OTTAWA — Simply winning a World Cup quarterfinal match may not suffice for the United States women’s national team.
Despite reaching this stage of the tournament for the seventh consecutive time, building a 333-minute shutout streak along the way, the Americans have been subjected to frequent criticism, with the volume increasing after an arrhythmic 2-0 win over Colombia on Monday in the round of 16.
On Friday, the United States will face China, a team it is expected to beat. But it seems that winning only a certain way — with more fluidity, more attacking ingenuity and more ease over all — would curtail the hand-wringing about the squad.