Paris Olympics: U.S. women’s soccer cruise into knockout round unbeaten after 2-1 win over Australia

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Emma Hayes, the United States women’s national team coach, was addressing her team on the latest edition of the club’s “Behind the Crest” YouTube show.

She was talking, specifically, about the team’s second game in Olympic group play against Germany, about the need to be tough, be patient, be together. And then …

“When we get our moments,” Hayes said, “be ruthless.”

Well, the Americans have their moment here at the Paris Olympics. They need to be ruthless and win this thing.

The U.S. finished off group play in style, utterly dominating an overmatched, on-its-heels Australian side 2-1 to finish 3-0 with a cumulative score of 9-2 — including a 4-1 beating of Germany.

The U.S. has a ton of momentum, plenty of confidence and a favorable draw that sets them against Group C runner-up Japan on Saturday at 9 a.m. in Paris.

Spain, the only other team here to move through group play unblemished, looms as an eventual finals opponent, but that can be worried about later. Canada, which was deducted six points due to a spying scandal, could still advance and be a factor, but again, we’ll see.

Right now there is too much to be enthused about, including the U.S. being able to use much of its bench in group play to, as much as possible, maintain fresh legs in a tournament that is a six-game, hot, mid-summer sprint.

There is little resemblance between the side that has filled the net and controlled play here in France to the one that played to a 0-0 tie against Costa Rica in its final send-off game on July 17. That one left serious questions about not just who would score, but how they would score.

Three Olympic games later and the front line of Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith and Mal Swanson is the story of the tournament. They are relentless, connected and more than capable of keeping this up.

The U.S. spent most of the game controlling the ball and peppering the Australian net. The score would have been more lopsided if not for the quite capable goalkeeping of Australia’s Mackenzie Arnold.

The Americans broke through in the 43rd minute when Smith headed a corner to the near side, where Rodman banged it home to break what had been a packed-in Australian defense.

Korbin Albert added another in the 77th minute with a blast from outside the box and off of Arnold’s fingertips.

Is this a team that is finally gelling? Is this about young players coming of age in real time, at a major tournament? Is this the Hayes effect? The decorated manager from Chelsea FC didn’t take over full-time until June 1. As we enter August, progress seems to be showing.

“Emma, honestly, is everything I have heard she is, in the best way possible,” Smith said earlier in these Olympics. “She creates such a welcoming environment and allows every player to be exactly who they are on and off the field. And she’s so supportive. She’s personable; she gets to know us as people, not just as players. And for me, that goes a long way.

“She still has a balance of holding a very high standard, every single day, in practice and making sure that we’re not falling short of that,” Smith continued. “Emma has the best balance of just being a really fun person, connecting with us as people, and pushing us as players.”

A fifth Olympic gold medal would be a remarkable turnaround for a U.S. team that went down in the Round of 16 at the 2023 World Cup and looked shaky even getting there.

“We’ve moved past that,” Hayes said. “We have moved on. We are excited. We can only control the controllables and now we have to go one step at a time.”

Right now that means Japan on Saturday. Hayes can focus on each step, and American fans are free to dream. The U.S. has been one of the best teams in these Olympics.

Now it’s time to be ruthless and go win gold.