New era, new head coach, but a familiar result for the US Women’s National Team.
The most decorated team in women’s soccer won a fifth Olympic gold medal at the Parc des Princes in Paris, defeating Brazil 1-0 in the final.
Mallory Swanson’s second-half goal gave the US the hard-earned victory on Saturday, capping off a dream start to head coach Emma Hayes’ managerial tenure.
After a challenging first 45 minutes, the US was much improved in the second half and took the lead when Korbin Albert’s superb through-ball found Swanson in space behind the Brazilian defense.
And on her 100th game for the US, the 26-year-old forward calmly placed her shot past goalkeeper Lorena. A check for offside soon after revealed that Swanson had timed her run to perfection.
That intervention in the 57th minute was enough to hand the US a record-extending fifth goal medal and first since the London 2012 Olympics.
Hayes only took up her head coach role in May and was tasked with changing the team’s fortunes after a disappointing round-of-16 exit at last year’s Women’s World Cup.
Her impact, it seems, has been immediate, though victory in this tournament hasn’t been straightforward. The players have endured difficult conditions throughout the competition and needed extra-time goals to defeat Japan in the quarterfinals and Germany in the semifinals.
“I’m going through so many emotions, so many feelings,” Hayes said. “I’m very emotional. I feel privileged to be the coach of this team. I have no words.”
For Brazil, this was a third defeat against the US in an Olympic final, denying the legendary Marta one last chance to win a gold medal. The 38-year-old, appearing in her final major international tournament, was brought on at the hour mark but couldn’t make a difference to the final result.
Brazil looked much sharper in the first half and almost took the lead when Gabi Portilho’s close-range shot was kept out by US keeper Alyssa Naeher, who made the excellent diving save just before halftime.
Earlier, Ludmila had put the ball in the back of the net, but the effort was quickly ruled out for offside.
Entering the final coming off unlikely victories against host France and reigning World Cup champion Spain, Brazil looked the better side for much of the first-half but couldn’t maintain its lively attacking approach in the second period.
Swanson’s neat finish swung the match in the favor of the US, which was supported by actor Tom Cruise and former captain Megan Rapinoe in the stands, before Trinity Rodman missed a good chance to make it 2-0.
Brazil struggled to create chances as the match wore on but did come agonizingly close to an equalizer when Adriana’s header was clawed away by Naeher in injury time, the final act of defiance from the US goalkeeper.
This was only Hayes’ 10th match as head coach of the USWNT since joining from Chelsea, but already she has an Olympic gold medal to her name, the victory ushering in a new era for the team.
The US players swarmed onto the pitch to celebrate at full-time, while Swanson, who missed the World Cup with a knee injury, was seen wiping tears from her eyes after scoring the biggest goal of her career.
“I had a couple of opportunities earlier. I tried to put those behind me,” she said. “It was a great feeling to score. All glory to God. I felt his work. I have gone through so many problems. I felt all of God’s power and glory and the work he did.”
