Since there hasn't been live soccer of live sports we have been doing articles about past games. This one was the nail-biting semi-final of the 2019 Women's World Cup.
Background knowledge: The teams were playing in Lyon France on July 7th. The starting lineup for the US is Alyssa Naeher, Crystal Dunn, Becky Sauerbrunn, Abby Dahlkemper, Kelly O'Hara, Rose Lavelle, Julie Ertz, Lindsey Horan, Christen Press, Alex Morgan, and Tobin Heath. It was Alex Morgan's 30th birthday and she was also captain. Jill Ellis was coaching her last World Cup semi-final, and the US was playing in a 4-3-3.
1st Half
England started with kick-off and the game was off. In the fourth minute, Rose Lavelle megged the English player and took a shot but the keeper was able to deflect it. In the sixth minute, the US had a free kick that Christen Press took just outside the box. Alex Morgan curved the ball just over the goal after Press kicked the ball to her. In the ninth minute, Rachel Daly, for the English team, received the ball and tried to cross the ball. It was headed out by Becky Sauerbrunn. A minute later in the tenth minute, Kelly O'Hara made a beautiful cross to Christen Press. Press took a few stutter steps and then met her head with the ball, putting it into the upper roof of the net. The US was up 1-0! In the sixteenth minute, Rose Lavelle shot the ball from outside of the box and it soared just high of the goal. In the nineteenth minute, the ball got crossed to Ellen White for England. White tipped it into the right corner of the goal! The score was tied 1-1! Later in the twenty-second minute, Rose Lavelle volleyed the ball trying to shoot, but it was deflected by an English player. In the twenty-fifth minute, Rose Lavelle shot the ball, but this time, it was blocked by the English keeper. In the twenty-eighth minute, an English player played the ball into the 18-yard box. Becky Sauerbrunn deflected it wide, but almost had an own goal. In the thirty-first minute, Lindsey Horan played the ball into the 18-yard box. Alex Morgan ran on to it and headed it into the lower-left corner of the goal! The US was up 2-1! Two minutes later in the thirty-third minute, an English forward rocketed the ball towards the US goal, but Alyssa Naeher was able to get high enough to deflect the ball out of bounds. In the thirty-fifth minute, Julie Ertz turned and rocketed the ball from outside of the 18-yard box, but the ball went just high of the roof of the net. In the forty-first minute, the US had a free-kick that Abby Dahlkemper took. She lofted it into the 18-yard box where Lindsey Horan headed it just wide. Halftime comes after one minute of extra time with the score of 2-1.
2nd Half
The US started off with kickoff. It was on! A few minutes later in the fiftieth minute, the ball was being bobbled back and forth between the US and England in the six-yard box. It eventually ended up in Naeher's hands. Three minutes later in the fifty-third minute, Julie Ertz received the ball and shot it towards goal, but it went over the goal. A few minutes later in the fifty-ninth minute, the English goalkeeper made a bad pass out of the back and Christen Press ran onto. Press shot the ball from just inside the eighteen-yard box but the ball curved wide. Then Sam Mewis was subbed in for Rose Lavelle. In the sixty-sixth minute, the US received a free-kick. Tobin Heath took it but it curved right towards the goalkeeper who was able to get it. Seconds later in the sixty-seventh minute, Ellen White scored for England. When looked at on VAR it was called offsides. In the seventy-ninth minute, an English player crossed the ball into the box where Ellen White was taken down by Becky Sauerbrunn. The ref went to VAR because it was pretty hard to see what happened. While this was under review, number ten, Carli Lloyd was subbed in for number seventeen, Tobin Heath. The ref said that Becky Sauerbrunn had tripped Ellen White so England received a penalty kick. Stephanie Houghton stepped up to take the kick. The whistle blew and she shot the ball but Alyssa Naeher dove and was able to stop it! The team and the fans went crazy! This sealed the game. In the eighty-fifth minute, England's Millie Bright got a second yellow card. Since this was her second yellow card, she got a red card so she was sent off. A few minutes later Kelley O'Hara was subbed out and Ali Krieger was subbed in. After seven minutes of extra time, the ref blew the whistle! The US was moving on!
The US ended up going to the finals to play the Netherlands who the US Won 2-0 against.
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Smed, Jamie. Alyssa Naeher. Flickr, www.flickr.com/photos/highwaytodistraction/
42566307714. Accessed 17 Apr. 2020.
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