The requirements are such with the No. 1-ranked U.S. girls’s nationwide crew that it’s a failure merely to be enjoying in a bronze medal match. If the defending World Cup champions miss out solely on the rostrum, it will be thought-about a aggressive disaster that will result in loads of soul-searching within the U.S. girls’s program.

That’s the sort of stress dealing with a USWNT that’s beforehand featured in 5 of the six girls’s soccer gold-medal matches which have been performed. In its first bronze medal match (Thursday, 4 a.m. ET), the USA can be dealing with an Australian girls’s crew that’s enjoying for a medal for the primary time in its historical past and driving actual momentum, outshooting Sweden 13-9 in a 1-0 semifinal loss. The 2 groups have already confronted off within the ultimate match of the group stage — a 0-0 draw throughout which neither crew pressured the problem within the second half given it was a handy outcome for each to advance.

Since that recreation, the 2 groups are driving very completely different vibes. Exterior of a 6-1 win towards New Zealand within the group stage, the USA has struggled to play properly or discover a rhythm to its play, and the standard high-flying assault has sputtered throughout an unthinkable three shutouts in 5 matches. The People outshot Canada 13-3 within the semifinal, however solely bought 4 of these photographs on track and misplaced the match 1-0. Extra regarding to U.S. followers in that match was the truth that the crew seemed out of vitality, concepts and combat, and there was no cohesion to its play. It’s unclear whether or not the U.S. girls can simply flip the swap from one recreation to the following. Ought to the American fall to the Aussies, will probably be their third loss in six matches in Tokyo. Coming into the Olympics, the USWNT had misplaced simply 3 times in its earlier 68 matches.

WATCH: USWNT vs. Australia on fuboTV (free 7-day trial)

Australia, which certified to the knockouts because the third-place crew from Group G, has a win towards Nice Britain (4-3 within the quarters), the 0-0 draw towards the No. 1 crew (USA) and the Matildas have additionally given Sweden its hardest matches on the Olympics regardless of dropping each (4-2 within the group stage and 1-0 within the semifinal). They’re enjoying the sport with fearlessness and scoring targets (star ahead Sam Kerr has 5 of them). And the Aussies are talking just like the intimidation issue the USA used to have is not going to be there within the bronze medal match:

“Nah, we will beat them. Doesn’t matter who it’s,” Australia goalkeeper Teagan Micah stated when requested if Australia was anxious concerning the USWNT. “We really feel like we had been the higher facet final time [in the group stage]. We simply gotta go on the market and do it once more.”

The right way to watch USWNT vs. Australia bronze medal recreation

• Date: Thursday, Aug. 5
• Time: 4 a.m. ET
• TV Channels: USA Community
• Spanish-language TV: Telemundo
• Streaming: fuboTV, NBCOlympics.com, TelemundoDeportes.com, NBC Sports activities app and Telemundo Deportes app (with person authentication)

The USA vs. Australia bronze medal match will air reside on USA Community and Telemundo at 4 a.m. ET. Each networks can be found to stream on fuboTV (free 7-day trial).

All soccer matches are additionally streamed within the USA on NBCOlympics.com, TelemundoDeportes.com, NBC Sports activities app and the Telemundo Deportes app — all with person authentication.

USWNT vs. Australia: Projected lineups

Because it’s the ultimate match for the USA on the 2021 Olympics and something in need of a win would imply the People go house and not using a medal, it’s secure to imagine there gained’t be any extra calculated participant rotations or different quantity crunching by the U.S. teaching workers in relation to participant minutes.

MORE: USWNT prize cash for successful bronze medal

Adrianna French would be the beginning goalkeeper rather than Alyssa Naeher, who hyperextended her proper knee within the first half of the semifinal vs. Canada. And also you’ve bought to determine that 36-year-old Megan Rapinoe and 39-year-old Carli Lloyd will get the beginning in what’s prone to be their final Olympic match.

The USWNT, and particularly Rapinoe, can be lucky to not must cope with the suspended Australian defender Ellie Carpenter, who’s among the finest on the earth and acquired a crimson card on the finish of the semifinal match towards Sweden. Exterior of the pressured Carpenter alternative, different modifications are unlikely. Though a number of starters have logged important minutes throughout these Olympics, it’s laborious to see supervisor Tony Gustavsson disrupting the group chemistry which has delivered sturdy outcomes to date.

USA

Projected starters (4-3-3, left to proper): 18-Adrianna Franch-GK — 2-Crystal Dunn, 4-Becky Sauerbrunn, 17-Abby Dahlkemper, 5-Kelley O’Hara — 9-Lindsey Horan, 8-Julie Ertz, 16-Rose Lavelle — 15-Megan Rapinoe, 10-Carli Lloyd, 11-Christen Press

Projected substitutes: 22-Jane Campbell-GK, 12-Tierna Davidson, 14-Emily Sonnett, 3-Samantha Mewis, 7-Tobin Heath, 13-Alex Morgan, 21-Lynn Williams

Projected to sit down out: 1-Alyssa Naeher (injured), 20-Casey Krueger, 19-Catarina Macario, 6-Kristie Mewis

Australia

Projected starters (3-4-3, left to proper): 18-Teagan Micah-GK — 7-Steph Catley, 4-Clare Polkinghorne, 14-Alanna Kennedy — 13-Tameka Yallop, 6-Chloe Logarzo, 10-Emily van Egmond, 16-Hayley Raso — 9-Caitlin Foord, 2-Sam Kerr, 17-Kyah Simon

Projected substitutes: 1-Lydia Williams, 5-Aivi Luik, 8-Elise Kellond-Knight, 21-Laura Brock, 3-Kyra Cooney-Cross, 15-Emily Gielnik, 11-Mary Fowler

Projected to sit down out: 22-Mackenzie Arnold-GK, 12-Ellie Carpenter (suspended), 19-Courtney Nevin, 20-Charlotte Grant

USA vs. Australia: Odds & prediction

This has been a transformative match for Australia’s Matildas, who will come away from it feeling they’ll compete and win towards a number of the finest groups on the earth. Boosted by that injection of perception, they’ll play with the urgency and vitality of a crew that’s in its first medal match.

Towards a USWNT that’s nonetheless looking for its manner, the Australian crew will make this an in depth recreation, as has been the case in every of its earlier 5 matches on this competitors. Even when they fall behind, the Aussies have proven they’ll come again, they usually’ll even have essentially the most in-form forwards on this matchup to do it, led by Kerr (beneath).

The 0-0 tie within the group stage was a novel case given what it meant for development. A scoreless draw might be not within the playing cards with each groups going all out to say the bronze medal. Within the final 11 matches within the collection (since 2008) each groups scored in eight of these 11 matches.

Though it didn’t work out of their first matchup, enjoying the “each groups to attain” (BTTS) may really work this time (-130 and +160 with no draw). Additionally, in case you purchase into an in depth recreation, the Australia double probability (+110) or the +0.75 Asian Handicap unfold (-115) are enticing odds.

Prediction: Australia 2, USA 1

Odds courtesy of DraftKings

• Australia to win (90 minutes): +400
• Draw (90 minutes): +260
• USA to win (90 minutes): -130
• Each groups to attain: -130
• Each groups to attain, no draw: +160
• Over 2.5 whole targets: -120
• Double probability: Australia win or draw: +110
• Australia +0.75 Asian Handicap: -115