Sophia Smith’s precise strike earned the United States a spot in the gold-medal match at the Paris Olympics with a 1-0 semifinal victory over Germany on Tuesday.
Smith’s extra-time goal secured the win for the Americans, who are undefeated in France under new coach Emma Hayes. The U.S. team will compete for their fifth gold medal in their sixth appearance in the Olympic women’s soccer final.
The United States will face Brazil, which defeated Spain 4-2 in the late match, in the final on Saturday in Paris. Germany will play Spain for the bronze medal on Friday in Lyon.
Brazil’s victory means Marta, an all-time great, should have the chance to end her international career by competing for gold after being suspended for the quarterfinals and semifinals. The 38-year-old has said this will be her last major tournament with the national team.
Smith broke the scoreless tie five minutes into extra time, evading defender Felicitas Rauch and beating German goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger. After scoring her third goal of the tournament, Smith celebrated on the ground and embraced teammate Mallory Swanson.
“I saw like a little opening of net and I was just like, ‘I’ve got to put it there. Just put it there,'” Smith said. “It was a good feeling. I know I had a few other chances this game that I should have put away. But sometimes one is all it takes.”
At the final whistle, the U.S. players ran to embrace goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who made a key save by kicking the ball away with her left foot in the final moments of the second extra period.
“The goal is closer but the job’s not done yet,” Swanson said. “I think that obviously we’re in a great position. You take this win and we’re on a high right now, but it’s important just to stay steady with everything we’re doing. Just stay steady.”
The Americans had previously routed Germany 4-1 in the group stage of the tournament.
The United States missed out on the finals in the last two Olympic tournaments, being eliminated in the quarterfinals in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro and relegated to the bronze-medal match at the Tokyo Games three years ago.
Germany was missing veteran captain Alexandra Popp due to illness. Popp was the only current German player from the squad that won the gold medal in 2016. Lea Schuller, who scored two goals against Zambia in the group finale to send Germany to the quarterfinals, was also absent due to an inflamed right knee.
The United States recalled defender Tierna Davidson to the game-day roster after she missed the last two games with a leg contusion. Defender Emily Sams, activated in Davidson’s absence, returned to the alternate list. Midfielder Sam Coffey, who missed the quarterfinals due to yellow card accumulation, also returned against Germany.
There were few chances in the opening half. Klara Buehl forced Naeher into a diving save in the 29th minute, but she was offside. For most of the match, Germany focused on defense in the absence of Popp and Schuller.
Rose Lavelle had a chance for the U.S. early in the game, but her attempt went straight to Berger. Swanson broke down the field in the 62nd minute and had a clear look at the goal but shot into the side netting.
The game opened up in the last 20 minutes of regulation. Janina Minge got off a shot in the 73rd minute, but it was easily saved by Naeher. Lindsey Horan’s header was caught by Berger five minutes later. Swanson appeared to break through in the 85th minute, but she was called offside.
“All I kept thinking as the game’s getting harder was ‘Dig harder. Suffer a little bit longer,'” Hayes said. “Listen, this is top level, you’re only going to get one shot. You can’t play the same team twice and have it be the same game. So I’m really proud of our ability to just hang in even though it was tough.”
The United States reached the semifinals after a hard-fought 1-0 win in extra time against Japan, with Trinity Rodman scoring her third goal of the tournament. Germany advanced on penalties after a scoreless draw with Canada in the quarterfinals. Berger stopped two Canadian attempts and converted her own penalty kick to secure the win.
The U.S. has won 27 of its 38 games against Germany. The last time the teams met in the Olympic semifinals was in 2004 when the Americans won 2-1 and went on to win the gold medal.
