Alyssa Naeher has exorcised Hope Solo’s ghost just in time

USWNT goalie Alyssa Naeher, much maligned before and during this Women’s World Cup, is a big reason why the team is contending for another title.

It was the moment Alyssa Naeher had been waiting for these past few weeks. It’s not that she wanted England to get a chance to push Tuesday’s pulsating semifinal into overtime. What Naeher relished was the chance to come up big for her team.

And she did.

The 31-year-old Naeher used a perfectly timed dive to stop the kick with six minutes left in the game. The Americans preserved their 2-1 lead in Lyon to advance to Sunday’s World Cup final.

“She’s been my number one. The theme of the tournament is ‘Dare to Shine’ and I said to my team, ‘We are going to shine the brightest’. I give her full credit,” U.S. coach Jill Ellis told reporters after the game. “She’s a tremendous person. She’s making her own mark and creating her own legacy, and that’s fantastic.”

For a team built to win and known for its ruthlessness, Naeher seemed out of place at times. The defense had done a great job keeping balls out of the penalty area, while the attack piled on goals. Naeher wasn’t featured in commercials and had no endorsement deals.

Just a few weeks ago, on the eve of the tournament, Naeher had been one of the team’s biggest question marks. On a team so stacked with talent, Naeher was considered an unknown quantity. The last time a U.S. goalie other than Hope Solo or Briana Scurry has started a World Cup knockout match before this tournament had been back in 1991.

Could Naeher, a newcomer to such a big stage, fill those big shoes and exorcise Solo’s ghost?

She finally has.

While Alex Morgan, who has a tournament-leading six goals and three assists, is a big reason why the U.S. could very well win back-to-back World Cups and add a fourth star to their jerseys, Naeher is now also become a bright focal point on a team loaded with established superstars like Megan Rapinoe and Julie Ertz.

Expect Naeher to have another big match on Sunday. She will need to be clutch once again if the United States wants to lift the World Cup and bring to an end what has been a wonderful tournament in France the past month. Naeher has reached top form just when it matters most: big games. It’s now time to finish the job. Indeed, she saved the fireworks against England on the eve of the Fourth of July. Her timing, like on the PK save, was perfect.

It should be noted that Naeher made her World Cup debut in the U.S.’s 13-0 win against Thailand and went largely untested in that game and in the the subsequent two group-stage matches against Chile and Sweden. Against Spain in the Round of 16, a defensive blunder gifted Spain a goal. The U.S. won 2-1 in the end. Disaster had been averted.

In the quarterfinals, in the hotly-contested match against France in Paris, she again gave up a soft goal. Many blamed Naeher for not making the save. In the end, the American offense saved the day and the U.S. won again, 2-1. Another potential comeback thwarted.

All those doubts and question marks went away in the semifinals against England. After saving Steph Hougton’s low kick, Naeher was celebrated by her teammates as if she had scored a goal. In making the save, Naeher became the first ‘keeper at this tournament to save a PK. She also finally exorcised the ghost of Solo, who has been throwing a steady stream of criticism at this USWNT in her role as BBC analyst. She’s just doing her job, but it hasn’t helped Naeher grab the spotlight.

Solo, who helped the U.S. win the World Cup the last the last time but was cut from the team in 2016, was in the crowd at the Stade de Lyon to witness the game and the big save. She had kind words for her replacement outside the stadium afterwards.

As did Scurry, who guarded the American net when they won it in 1999 at the Rose Bowl on penalties against China in an epic match that took place in the pre-social media days.

“Welcome to the club, Alyssa Naeher,” Scurry wrote on Facebook.

Naeher, who teammates have described as quiet, said she remained focused on the ball and Houghton’s body language when making the save.

https://twitter.com/FOXSports/status/1146210504131534850

“I was just trying to get a good read on it,” Naeher told Sports Illustrated. “Trying to just take a few deep breaths, get focused on the ball, get focused on the player and kind of let instinct take over from there.”

Naeher had also come up big earlier in the game. The first massive save had come in the 33rd minute, two minutes after Morgan’s goal, when Keira Walsh unleashed a shot from distance. Naeher, her arms extended, flew across the mouth of her goal to make the block.

“We knew she likes to shoot from distance,” Naeher said. “That’s something we were prepared for. And I was able to get a good read on it and a good touch.”

Morgan, who was named player of the match for netting the game winner, told Fox Sports afterwards: “Alyssa Naeher, she should be the player of the match… She saved our butts today. We needed to stick to our defense at the end and we did it quite well. I am so proud of every player who stepped up tonight.”

Naeher, who plays for the Chicago Red Stars of the NWSL, will again have to step up Sunday in what will be the biggest game of her life. Don’t be surprised if she does it once again. Goalkeepers thrive on big saves and the momentum and confidence that comes with making them. She’s already done it against England — and she can certainly do it again with the trophy on the line.