The US women’s soccer team faced their first loss of the Tokyo Olympics on Tuesday. This defeat is their first since January 2019.
Sweden emerged victorious with a 3-0 win against the US team. Stina Blackstenius, the striker for Sweden, made an early impact by scoring a header less than half an hour into the game and added another goal in the 54th minute. Lina Hurtig sealed the victory with the third goal.
US captain Megan Rapinoe acknowledged Sweden’s strength by stating, “They’re one of the best teams in the world. We always aim to win every game we play. So, the result tonight was unexpected. It’s frustrating, especially to lose to Sweden.”
In response to the first-half performance, US team manager Vlato Andonovski made strategic changes during halftime. Carli Lloyd substituted Alex Morgan, and Julie Ertz took over from Sam Mewis. However, these alterations did not lead to a breakthrough against Sweden’s solid defense.
Reflecting on the defeat, Rapinoe expressed, “We were outplayed tonight. I felt we were a bit tense and made mistakes. We need to focus on the upcoming game in three days without dwelling on this loss or getting intimidated by Sweden.”
