I’m not too disappointed to see Brazil out, though. Seemed like their goalkeeper was coming off her line early in most of the penalty kicks, and never got called for it.
Nothing is deplorable or anti-football if it gets you into the final. They deployed the perfect tactics to get the necessary results. Their opponents just couldn’t break them down and choked in PKs.
Sweden has the talent they have. Their country did not send them to Brazil to play a certain style of soccer. They sent them there to win a gold medal, and they’re doing what they have to do to win it.
Suit yourselves. I hate that style of football. If everyone played like that, I would give up watching the sport.
In your face, Hope Solo!
Yay: go cowards!
But I didn’t say I liked that style of play. Nor did I suggest anyone else should. I agree it’s dull.
My point is that they are being criticized for doing it, as if what they are doing is wrong or unsportsmanlike. They were called “cowards.” But their style of play is the only one that will lead to success. It may be a boring style of play, but you cannot find fault in them for doing what they have to do to try to win. The point of soccer isn’t to put on an artistic demonstration. It’s to win.
If Sweden sought to make Hope Solo happy by playing a wide open game they’d lose badly and go home as losers, no medals. And everyone in Sweden would correctly think “well, that was stupid, what the hell were they thinking?”
It amuses me that when someone like Leicester plays very defensive, counterattacking style, everyone gets excited, but when the Sweden’s womens team does it’s “cowardly” or anti-football.
“Anti-football” as an epithet is used in the Premier League and top-flight European football all the time, against the teams that do it. There’s no gender disparity here. Leicester was a cool story because they were such an underdog. And anyway their play style never involved turtling as severe and boring as Sweden’s women’s team this year. But their darling status will end soon, if it hasn’t already.
By the way, Hope Solo was indeed in the wrong for saying what she said. It was unsportmanlike. I don’t support her comments.
But I myself am just a fan. I’ll call it as I sees it, and I hope Germany trounce Sweden. I’ll criticize and cheer against Sweden all I want to for their shitty play style.
No one said there was any gender disparity. That seems like an interesting objection - care to tell us more? 
I thought that’s what you were alluding to in post #68.
Not in the slightest. It was, if anything, a backing of the view in post #67.
Anyway, turtling is not against the rules, nor should it be. It’s just an unappealing (at best) style of play.
To be clear, the way for a quality side to handle one that turtles is to develop better creativity at pulling the knot apart. The best teams in the world can do this. The USA women’s team should have done better. It’s common enough for outclassed sides to resort to turtling, and hoping for a counter, that there’s no excuse for Team USA not to have been able to handle it. No excuse whatsoever. And then they should have been better in the shootout. They weren’t. Game over. Hope Solo should have shown better sportsmanship, as well, but she has been a poor loser before. But she’s still the world’s best female keeper.
Fans can and will criticize teams for all kinds of reasons. I will cheer against Sweden because I think their skill is too low to deserve a shot at the gold, and because of their deplorable tactics in both group and knockout. I’m hoping Germany is the team to punish their timidity.
Deutschland, vor! Noch ein Tor!
No bronze for the Brazilian ladies.
Alright Germany, beat Sweden! And the German men tomorrow, too, we want 7-1 against Brazil again.
Incidentally, if you have a great goalkeeper but poor offense, turtling is the way to maximize your strength. Just hunker down for a tie, if not a 1-0 win, and hope your Neuer-quality GK saves you on PKs.
Good tournament for Canada, winning every game but the semi. Too bad they couldn’t reverse the results of the two Germany games :).
Incidentally, if Germany wins the final, it sets up a situation that always seems slightly unfair to me. Both Canada and Sweden would have beat Brazil and lost to Germany, so there should really be a Sweden-Canada match for silver & bronze.
You also then have to hope your “poor offense” makes their PKs. It’s a big gamble, but sure, for outclassed sides, it might be their best shot. And it’s true that sometimes a team intends to play more offensively, but is just denied opportunity by facing a much more powerful midfield.
If I’m going to cheer as a neutral, I want to see a side that develops their midfield and offense, that can do more than just pack the box with bodies.
Can you really say that it’s deplorable on the one hand, but should remain legal on the other? Sweden’s tactics were chosen precisely because of the environment that makes them successful. Isn’t supporting that environment congruent with desiring to see those tactics employed again?
I want to see those tactics lose, simple as that.