RIO DE JANEIRO _ Hope Solo was not sent to Brazil to be cheerful and classy. She was sent to serve as a human wall in front of the net.
She's a courageous, astoundingly talented goalkeeper. She's not such a wonderful sports analyst, but that's fine.
As long as Solo remains America's best soccer goalkeeper, she should remain in front of the net. She will erupt again, maybe tomorrow, but that's the price tag for her skills. She's worth the risk.
If you were surprised Solo called Swedish players "a bunch of cowards," that just means you don't know much about Solo. She's long been belligerent, and never has been afflicted with composure. She speaks her mind, which is a stormy destination.
She was not commenting on the state of the Swedes' souls. She was observing that Sweden, under the expert direction of coach Pia Sundhage, employed a plodding, offensively unambitious strategy to upset the United States women's Olympic soccer team. In Solo's mind, conservative soccer equals cowardly soccer.
I don't enjoy conservative soccer, either. It drains the game of its essential spirit and thrills. One massive, never-ending problem: Conservative soccer works, especially when utilized by an underdog.
"I thought that we played a courageous game," Solo said. " ... I think we showed a lot of heart. ... But I also think we played a bunch of cowards. The best team did not win today. I strongly believe that."
Sundhage and Solo have a complicated history. Sundhage coached the Americans to a surprising gold-medal victory in the 2008 Beijing Games. The Americans played a conservative, slowdown game to upset heavily favored Brazil in the final. Sundhage and Solo failed to become friends, which is no surprise. Solo is better at creating enemies than comrades. Sundhage departed the American team after the 2008 Games to coach Sweden.
Sundhage deserves the majority of the credit for the 2008 gold for her dull but brilliant strategy, but Solo deserves even more applause for the 2012 gold. In the final minutes of a thriller against Japan, the U.S. was nursing a 2-1 lead.
Then Mana Iwabuchi swiped the ball from Christie Rampone. Iwabuchi had a clear view of back of the net with only Solo in her way. America's goalkeeper appeared to have no chance.
But Solo refused to budge, patiently waiting for Iwabuchi to make the first move. Iwabuchi's shot was expertly placed to the far post, but Solo lunged, grazed the ball with her left hand and saved a gold medal. An acrobatic, abrasive goaltender rescued her teammates.
Yes, she can be fiery. I briefly endured Solo's wrath at the 2008 Games. I was writing a column criticizing Sundhage's plodding tactics. It was a nostalgic column for the days when Mia Hamm led a running, gunning team that dominated the world.
Solo was not pleased with my questions. She barked and glared at me. I caught a glimpse of what makes her great. And I caught a glimpse at what keeps getting her in trouble.
Her fire raged out of control again Saturday. She was enraged after the Swedes, and the former coach she despises, ended America's gold-medal run, and she spoke straight from her wounded heart. Her selection of words was not wise, or appropriate, but her general message was sound. I believe in my team, Solo was saying, and I have serious doubts about those Swedes and their clunky soccer.
Solo traveled too far in her brutally frank analysis, but I prefer her approach to the standard, don't-say-anything approach used by far too many athletes and coaches. When talking to Air Force football coach Troy Calhoun after a victory, it often sounds as if he wasn't even there to watch the game. He declines to offer clear answers to clear questions. He's on the opposite extreme of Solo. Calhoun, unfortunately, is far from alone in his say-nothing stance.
There's a better way. Swimmer Lilly King became a national hero when she attacked her Russian rival Yulia Efimova. King didn't take the happy-talk approach. She spoke her mind about Efimova's doping past, and then she went out and defeated Efimova in the pool.
"I'm not the sweet little girl _ that's not who I am," King said.
Solo is not so different from King. Filled with passion, Solo said what was truly on her mind. She took a chance and took a swing at the Swedes. Solo is not a calculated woman.
She is a master goalkeeper who belongs in front of our American net.
