The international football team of Canada shocked the USA team, as the latter faced a bitter defeat. Canada snatched a 1-0 win to reach the final of the Olympic women’s football tournament at Tokyo 2020.
Kashima Stadium witnessed history, as Canada beat the world champion in the semi-final. The girls reached the final for the first time.
It is a hard-earned win for the Canadian players, who scored a goal from a penalty. Jessie Fleming signed her name with gold as she scored the decider.
The USA team paid for a costly mistake committed by Tierna Davidson, who fouled Deanne Rose in the Penalty spot.
USA’s lamentable failure
This defeat came as a shock to the USA team, as the girls hoped to reach the final. This is their second time in a row to bid farewell to the Games from the semi-final.
It is worth mentioning that the USA team is a two-time winner of the football Olympic title.
The team played their best in the second half and created multiple chances, but Canada defending line played a brilliant match.
Adrianna Franch entered the pitch in the 30th min to substitute Alyssa Naeher, who faced an injury.
Naeher was the hero of the quarter-final against the Netherlands, as both teams played penalty shootout. The US first-choice goalkeeper led the US to face Canada in the semi-final.
However, the team will still fight. They want to get back home with something – the bronze at least. They will face the losing side from the Australia-Sweden semi-final fixture.
Canada quest to the final
The Canucks will now face Australia or Sweden in Friday’s gold medal match.
Likewise, Canada will face the winning side from the Australia-Sweden semi-final fixture.
Canada has made history, as they beat the USA for the first time since 2001. This makes them head and shoulders in terms of the final, regardless of whom they are playing.
It is worth noting that the foul Davidson committed has been missed at first. But VAR had the upper hand in the situation, as the referee reconsidered the decision to become a penalty.
Even scoring the penalty was not easy, as Adrianna Franch, the substitute goalkeeper, moved with the ball. Fleming, in turn, had shot the ball to the hard bottom corner, scoring the winning goal in 75min.
Thoughts on the match
Forward Megan Rapinoe, 36, said:
“It sucks. We just didn’t have it today,” said Megan Rapinoe, the US forward, “Just too many errors from us again. Obviously, we never want to lose to Canada. I don’t think I’ve ever lost Canada. So it’s a bitter one.
“I’ve been thinking about the whole tournament, and we just didn’t have that juice that we normally do.”
