Pinned
Even the replay required a second look, so slim was the margin that separated the United States and Sweden on Sunday night. But there it was, clear as day: the ball a fraction of an inch over the goal line, and the United States fully, and unequivocally, out of the World Cup.
For more than two hours, the United States and Sweden had circled one another like prizefighters in a World Cup classic. They had pushed and shoved, taken shots and saved them. And then, after two halves and two extra periods couldn’t separate them, they went to penalties — and even then they were only a sliver apart.