I always want the US to win when they are playing.  That never changes.  What does change, however is whether or not I think they will win.  Heading into the Spain game, I was pretty certain that the US would beat Spain, although if you would have told me that the US would need two penalty kick goals from Rapinoe to do that, I would have been surprised.  Credit to Spain for making it interesting.

The win over Spain set up the show down that everyone has hoped for (and expected) since the draw came out.  USA vs France in Paris!

While I want the US to win and advance to the semifinals, when I really think about it, I’m not convinced we will win the game.  On the flip-side, France hasn’t convinced me either.

Neither team has impressed to the level they were expected to coming into the tournament.  The question is whether that is due to the quality of the opponents, the play of their own team or a combination of both.  It’s interesting as both teams are saddled with expectations, France as the host country and the US as the defending champions, and, well as the US.  The pressure will be at an all-time high in Paris and one could normally argue that the US has more players that have thrived in that pressure, but France has a large group that have been competing at the highest level with their club teams.

Both teams are capable of winning the game.  It will come down to which team handles the pressure, the individual match-ups, tactics and most importantly, performance on the day.

I haven’t picked a winner yet, but my heart is telling me the US and my gut is telling me France.  That could change as we hear more from both teams heading into the game.