Solo delivers in 200th appearance

Love her or hate her, Hope Solo’s dominance as a goalkeeper is undeniable.

Solo came up big in her historic 200th international appearance as the United States fought off France 1-0 on Saturday in an Olympic group match at Mineirao Stadium. And she did it while facing boos from Brazilian fans still riled up about her social media posts about the Zika virus.

“What’s important to me is that I played the best quality of football that I can play, and that hopefully our team makes it to the final,” Solo said. “If they (the fans) are having fun, great. I like a loud stadium. But it really doesn’t mean anything to me.”

Solo became the first goalkeeper, male or female, to reach the 200-cap mark in international play. She also became just the 11th U.S. player to reach that number of appearances.

The U.S. women, winners of last year’s World Cup and ranked No. 1 in the world, are vying for their fourth straight Olympic gold medal. Along with the tournament-opening victory over New Zealand, the United States is in good position for the quarterfinals.

France, ranked No. 3, was considered the Americans’ biggest rival in the group. And they proved a tenacious foe.

Carli Lloyd’s goal finally broke through in the 64th minute against France goalkeeper Sarah Bouhaddi. Tobin Heath’s shot caromed off the post and while Bouhaddi struggled to recover, Lloyd tapped in the rebound for her eighth Olympic goal.

“Never forget that the U.S. is the world champion,” French coach Philippe Bergeroo said.

For the first half, it was all Solo.

She tipped Wendie Renard’s header from a free kick off the crossbar in the 16th minute. Her most dramatic stop came in the 41st when Marie-Laure Delie charged in alone and Solo collapsed to her knees to smother the shot.

“She was getting free and I knew she was going to crack a shot as soon as she saw the goal, so I just tried to close her as quickly as I could. And I as I closed her – some people think she went through my legs on purpose because it was the only part that was open because I had her closed down – I don’t really think so, I think she just tried to crack a shot,” Solo said.

The 200th cap was Solo’s latest accomplishment in a 16-year international career.