USWNT upset Germany, advance to Women's World Cup final

MONTREAL, QUEBEC

In Montreal, they would say this about what the Americans did on Tuesday night at Olympic Stadium: Incroyable!

But given the emphatic way in which the United States Women’s National Team just punched their ticket to the final of this 2015 Women’s World Cup, let’s just say it: A 2-0 win over No. 1-ranked Germany? Dang! That was indeed incredible, and unexpected.

After a World Cup campaign in which the U.S. has looked like it might have one foot out the Canadian door, Carli Lloyd and Kelly O’Hara turned the tables on Germany in their much anticipated semifinal showdown. So many doubted that the U.S. had anything like this kind of dominating performance in them, but there it was.

No more questions, everyone. The U.S. looks like it wants to make good on its unrepentant ambition to win it all. Next stop? Vancouver, where they face the winner of Wednesday's Japan-England semifinal (live, FOX, FOX Sports Go, 7 p.m. ET).

"It's not about the system. It's about the players on the field. They did a great job," USA manager Jill Ellis said after the match. "They played their hearts out with guts tonight. I'm so, so pleased for them. We prepared very, very well. We watched a lot of film and broke it down, but the players executed. That's the key."

The game took a while to come to the U.S., but when it did, it was emphatic — and fitting. After months of missed action and a Women's World Cup in which she has shown only a flash of her potential, it had been a tough night for Alex Morgan. There were several awkward and harrowing missed chances by the U.S. striker to give the U.S. the goals it so desperately wanted, Morgan did the next best thing: She took one for the team.

With 67 minutes gone in the second half, Morgan was breaking toward the goal when Annike Krahn backed into Morgan and pushed the Californian up into the air before falling straight on her back. The pain lasted just long enough for Romanian referee Teodora Albon to whistle a penalty.

And then it was all Lloyd. When the U.S. midfielder is unleashed, so, too, is the U.S. offense. What Germany could not do when it had been given a penalty kick just moments before, Lloyd delivered. She took her time, collected herself and stutter stepped up to the ball, drilling it into the back of the net and giving Germany goalkeeper no chance to stop it.

"No, not at all. I just remained [calm], having my eyes on the ball and slotted it home. I knew what I had to do," Lloyd said after the USA victory. "It's a dream come true, this is what we train for. I know this was a great game and a great win but my eyes are all on the final."

Germany missed had just missed its big chance to break open the scoring and take control of the match. In the 59th minute, defender Julie Johnston brought down Alexandra Popp and drew a yellow card. As the U.S. took stock of the tough position they now faced, U.S. goalkeeper Hope Solo prepared herself for the confrontation in completely dramatic fashion.

Solo stalked around the penalty box, unwilling to take her position as she motioned to the referee and threw her water bottle down into the turf. The referee backed Solo up as Germany’s star striker Celia Sasic waited. But by the time Solo decided she was set and Sasic lined up and let go her shot, the moment had passed.

Sasic’s shot was well wide to the left and, as Sasic clutched her head in disbelief, the crowd of 51,176 inside Olympic Stadium exploded in cheers.

So did the U.S. team. Solo took Johnston around the shoulder and exhorted her to forget the foul, and so then did the rest of the U.S. defense. There was no damage. That was the first penalty kick miss for Germany this World Cup. The U.S. was still in the game.

Ellis unleashed the June surprise. The formation sent Morgan alone up top and allowed center midfielders Lloyd and Lauren Holiday to finally have room to operate at the heart of the U.S. attack, with Tobin Heath and Morgan Brian providing the link between the back and front lines.

The formation was exactly what the U.S. needed, and the switches were probably overdue. However, the element of surprise gave the U.S. a double advantage. They were clearly psyched, as their execution was at an entirely different level after weeks, if not months, of struggle.

But if Morgan was the designated closer, she struggled so mightily that by the time 20 minutes was gone in the second half, she looked frustrated almost to the point of defeat.

The first half ended with a slight letdown in intensity from the opening minutes, which was a relief for the Germans. After a 120-minute game against France just three days prior that was won on penalty kicks, Germany gamely tried to keep pace with the U.S. attack but fell a step behind.

The U.S. energy level was a whole level higher than had been demonstrated at any time in the tournament. Maybe they were rising to the level of competition: Germany early on in the game looked ready to make the U.S. pay for any mistake. However, the formation and lineup certainly produced the desired effects. The U.S. got off eight shots, five on goal, while Germany got only one shot off on Solo.

The momentum was brought to a crashing halt in the 28th minute. A Germany free kick sent the ball across the box, where Brian and Alexandra Popp challenged for possession in the air. Their heads knocked and Popp dropped with a bloody crack and Brian fell to the carpet, too. Popp got rinsed off and Brian was checked via concussion protocols, then both remained in the game.

Later on, Morgan had a fantastic chance 15 minutes into the match after Heath pushed a perfect pass through the penalty box that Morgan picked up clear of any defender. But all alone against Angerer proved no easy chance. Angerer made a decisive save against Morgan’s left-footed attempt.

Maybe facing Angerer in practice as Portland Thorn teammates played into the moment. Morgan said she was keen to some of Angerer’s tendencies but then again, Angerer confidently stood her ground against a wide-open Morgan. The shot capped what had been a blistering opening to the match.

"We always belive that we're the best in the world or that we can compete with the best in the world," O'Hara said after the victory. "But we still gotta job to do, and we gotta finish it, and that's how you become number one in the world: you win a World Cup."