Mark Ziegler of the San Diego Union-Tribune launches a scathing tirade of the way the U.S. women’s national team has treated the Hope Solo incident, allowing its former No. 1 goalkeeper to become the scapegoat for what was, quite simply, “the worst loss in the 22-year history of the women’s program” in the Americans’ 4-0 loss to Brazil in the World Cup semifinal last month. Ziegler says the excessive handling of Solo’s negative comments (which were about being dropped ahead of that game) was a clear attempt by “an inexperienced, immature team and an equally ill-equipped coach” to mask the embarrassment of what was a very harsh reality — namely, that this U.S. team simply wasn’t good enough.
It’s not that Solo was in the right to criticize her team and her coach, but the fact that a public apology on her Web site wasn’t enough and had to be followed by a lengthy press release that she most likely didn’t write but was forced to sign, smatters of more “diversionary tactics” to draw attention away from the real matter at hand.
Meanwhile, everyone seems to have forgotten that Briana Scurry, the woman who replaced Solo in goal, said something very similar about Siri Mullinix after the U.S. lost the gold-medal game to Norway at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, and with no consequences. “I honestly believe that in my heart, yes, I knew I could have made a difference in that match” were her words.