USA vs. Germany player ratings

After a number of relatively unconvincing performances in the group stage and round of 16, the United States pushed their way to Vancouver with a valiant statement of a performance against number one-ranked Germany. Goals from Carli Lloyd and Kelley O’Hara and a missed penalty from Germany’s Celia Sasic highlighted this action-packed match from Montreal.

USA

Hope Solo (GK) — 8/10

Reliable as ever, Solo had little to truly deal with in this match (Germany recorded 0 shots on goal), but rose to the occasion when trouble came her way. Her vast experience showed during Sasic’s missed penalty—Solo’s mind games may have contributed to the German forward’s wide shot.

Ali Krieger (RB) — 7/10

The right-back’s performance was solid as expected, and though she managed a few good crosses, none came of much. Krieger held back her German counterpart and overlapped well with Heath further up the pitch.

Julie Johnston (CB) — 7/10

One of the USA’s strongest players in the first half, Johnston not only provided stalwart defense in the back, she also showed her impressive technique on the ball during a handful of forays into Germany’s box. Despite Johnston’s confident and assertive first half display, the final 45 minutes were nearly the opposite. Rattled early by the Germans’ pressing into the USA half, Johnston was responsible for Sasic’s ultimately missed penalty and was generally less imposing than she had been in the first half.

Becky Sauerbrunn (CB) — 6/10

Sauerbrunn was solid in central defense, if rather unremarkable. A silly foul and subsequent foul early in the match kept the defender from getting stuck in as the game wore on. Sauerbrunn’s experience and focus allowed Johnston to roam further forward on occasion, helping the USA push up the pitch.

Meghan Klingenberg (LB) — 8/10

As lively as ever at left-back, Klingenberg’s speed and control allowed her to overlap the USA midfielders on more than one occasion and put in some dangerous crosses. Definitely the most aggressive of the USA defense, Klingenberg was also able to keep Germany from exploiting the wings for nearly the entire match.

Morgan Brian (CM) — 7/10

Despite suffering a particularly painful-looking head injury in a clash with Germany’s Alexandra Popp, Brian played the full 90 as the USA’s deepest midfielder. Despite her youth and relative inexperience, Brian was lively and gritty, covering the defense well and initiating attacks through the rest of the midfield.

Lauren Holiday (CM) — 7/10

Like Brian, Holiday was solid if unexceptional in her central midfield role. While she seemed to be positioned to be more defensive, her team’s domination in the opposing half allowed her a bit of leeway to push higher when the team had possession. A handful of neat passes from Holiday near the opposition box opened up some chances for the USA, though none directly resulted in goals.

Megan Rapinoe (LM) — 9/10

Showing just how much her team missed her against China, Rapinoe once again looked world-class in this match. She created many chances for the USA, some directly from her play as well as a few from the free kicks she earned. Her corners were solid if unspectacular, her passing was crisp and inventive, and her only errors were a handful of missed chances at goal.

Tobin Heath (RM) — 8/10

Using her speed and trickery to make the USA’s right flank nearly as dangerous as the left, Heath had a solid game highlighted by some excellent passing—including a world-class through ball to Alex Morgan that the striker should have taken better.

Carli Lloyd (CAM) — 10/10

Lloyd showed once again against Germany that she is one of the tournament’s best players, as her creativity and attacking fervor rewarded her with both a goal and an assist. Her position between the midfield and lone striker was a genius tactical decision by coach Ellis. Lloyd’s penalty was nearly perfect, and her technique in creating O’Hara’s goal was nothing short of exquisite.

Alex Morgan (F) — 7/10

Morgan played well in her role as a lone striker, but her inability to finish well kept her from getting on the scoresheet. Many of Morgan’s shots were agonizingly close, and she should have done better with a number of them. What saved her performance, though, was her persistence and aggression towards goal, as she earned the penalty (even if the call was questionable) that put the USA on the board.

Kelley O’Hara (F sub. for Heath) — 8/10

Normally O’Hara’s time on the pitch (Around 8 or 9 minutes) wouldn’t be enough to provide a realistic rating, but her well-taken goal showed her ability to do serious damage in the final third. After some excellent technique and cross by Carli Lloyd, O’Hara flew into six-yard box with a vengeance and acrobatically kicked the ball straight into the net.

Abby Wambach (F sub. for Rapinoe) — n/a

A somewhat mystifying substitution, Wambach played the final ten minutes after replacing Megan Rapinoe. She only had a handful of touches, most of them close to the halfway line or to hold the ball up, clarifying her coach’s reasoning.

Sydney Leroux (F sub. for Morgan) — n/a

Leroux barely entered the pitch before the whistle was blown for full-time.

GERMANY

Nadine Angerer (GK) — 6/10

Made three solid saves against the USA, but was unable to do too much about the two goals she conceded.

Leonie Maier (RB) — 5/10

Maier was under constant barrage by Rapinoe, Klingenberg, and the rest of the USA attack, and was forced to concede a number of fouls and earn a yellow card. Didn’t do enough and was caught out of position a few times. Lost Carli Lloyd for the USA’s second goal.

Saskia Bartusiak (CB) — 8/10

Solid in defense, but could have done better to pressure the USA’s attackers and clear some of the corners and crosses that came in.

Annike Krahn (CB) — 7/10

Krahn will feel rightly aggrieved by the penalty decision, but it was her error nonetheless that helped put the USA on the board via Carli Lloyd’s penalty.

Tabea Kemme (LB) — 5/10

Kemme lost Kelley O’Hara for the USA’s second goal, as she should have been in front of the player to clear Lloyd’s cross. She was tormented a bit by Tobin Heath and provided little going forward.

Simone Laudehr (M) — 6/10

One of the furthest forward players for Germany, Laudehr attempted to exploit the gaps between the USA’s central defenders and its marauding fullbacks, but was unable to make anything out of her opportunities. Put in a couple crosses and one wayward shot.

Anja Mittag (M) — 6/10

Mittag was unable to create much for her forward, and was too often dragged backward to help regain possession of the ball.

Melanie Leupolz (M) — 6/10

Leupolz managed a handful of shots, but none really troubled the USA goal. Handled midfield with Goessling, but found herself overrun too many times.

Alexandra Popp (M) — 7/10

Earned both her team’s penalty and a bloody head with a clash against the USA’s Brian, Popp had possibly the best performance on her team. Should have done more with the chances she had, but the USA’s defense made it nearly impossible.

Lena Goessling (M) — 7/10

One of Germany’s best players due to her excellent delivery of crosses and set pieces, Goessling created a number of chances for her teammates but none of them were able to capitalize. Had a shot hoofed over the top of the goal and put in the most dangerous set piece of the match—the result of which was the clash of heads between Morgan Brian and Alexandra Popp.

Célia Šašić (F) 5/10

Feeling confident in her abilities after the shootout win against France, Šašić’s average performance was underlined by her missed penalty. Šašić was persistent in her attacking, but couldn’t make anything happen. Even a rare gift from a Johnston mistake didn’t come of much as Šašić lost possession immediately afterwards. Attempted an acrobatic bicycle kick late on but failed to do anything with it.

Dzsenifer Marozsán (M sub. for Mittag) — 6/10

Barely played long enough to register a rating, but it was clear that this was a substitution that wasn’t helping Germany’s chances. Marozsan carried a knock into this game, though it’s unclear if that affected her performance in this match.