There has been a lot of buzz this week as the Tokyo Olympics start to heat up. First, a boat prevented half the field in the men's triathlon from jumping into the water during the start, causing chaos as the athletes had to be called back in to reset the race. During the same race, Kristian Blummenfelt collapsed after crossing the finish line and had to be pushed away in a wheelchair. In some places, the temperature has reached 105F, pushing tennis player Daniil Medvedev to take two medical timeouts and even got an extreme heat exception to go inside 10 minutes between matches. Then Katie LaDecky added to her greatness by winning gold in the Women's first-ever 1500m swim. Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in the field, dropped out from the individual All-Around gymnast finals to work on her mental health.
There is no doubt that Tokyo will be one of the most highly remembered Olympic games with everything that has happened so far, including the year delay due to COVID-19. Extreme heat, no fans, mental health, and the delay are all things to consider as bettors look into the Olympics.
(Odds courtesy DraftKings Sportsbook)
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USA vs. Netherlands
It may seem like it has been a rough road so far for the #1 ranked United States Women's Soccer team [USWNT]. The gold medal favorites losing 3-0 in the opening Olympic group stage surprised everyone. After being dominated, some may worry that the USWNT may have lost their touch but let’s not forget that Sweden always has been a tough matchup. When the two teams last played, the USWNT had to score a penalty kick in the 87th minute to save their unbeaten streak by drawing 1-1. Sweden still managed to snap the 16 game winning streak that the USWNT was on at the time.
Advancing to the knockout round after a 0-0 draw to Australia, the USWNT have a challenge ahead of them, facing the #4 ranked Netherlands, who have looked completely dominant while scoring 21 goals through three games in the Olympic group stage. Netherlands’ Sarina Wiegman, voted Best Women's FIFA Coach of 2020, will be looking to go out with a bang as she coaches her final event for the Netherlands before taking over the head coaching job for England after the Olympics.
Even with the Netherlands’ hyper-offensive style, I think the USWNT still comes out on top with this game. The United States has played tougher teams than the Netherlands. Facing #5 Sweden (0-3), #9 Australia (0-0) and #22 New Zealand (6-1) while the Netherlands played #104 Zambia (10-3) #15 ranked China (8-2) and #7 Brazil (3-3). The Netherlands have shown that teams can score on them, giving up 2.67 goals per game. Since the start of 2020, the only teams not named Sweden that have scored on the USWNT are Japan back in March and New Zealand team that scored this week late in the match.
Let's not forget that before losing to Sweden, the USWNT was on a 44 game unbeaten streak, and they had a great bounce-back game after the loss by winning 6-1 to New Zealand. History is with the USWNT. The last time they played the Netherlands, they won 2-0. The time before that was the 2019 World Cup, when they won 2-0. The only time the United States lost to the Netherlands was in 1991. Leading the series 8-1, the United States has dominated the Netherlands with tough defense. The USWNT is a great value right now, with the loss to Sweden causing doubts in the #1 ranked Women's Soccer team. Take out the game vs. USWNT's kryptonite Sweden, and they are as dominant as ever.
Pick: USA Draw No Bet (-145)
Canada vs. Brazil
A rematch of the bronze-medal match from the Rio Olympics, the #7 Brazil vs. #8 Canada, will be a fantastic game. Brazil is 2-3 vs. Canada in the last 5 matches they have played but have won two straight, 4-0 and 2-0. In Brazil's last 5 matches, the only team they have lost to is the #1 United States, while Canada's only loss in its last five matches is to Brazil.
Canada's backline has long been the team’s strength, with Ashley Lawrence leading the way as one of the team’s brightest stars. The Canadians have still managed to give up one goal per match to some low-scoring teams during the Olympic group stage, showing lapses in their defense. Brazil's high-scoring offense averaging 3 goals per match will take advantage of these lapses and capitalize on the opportunities to score goals. I am not sure that Canada will be able to keep up with the scoring of Brazil.
Canada's offense has been struggling, only scoring four goals through their three matches in the group stage. One goal was an amazing cross from Ashley Lawrence to Adriana Leon to tie the game with Great Britain. The Brazilian defense has only given up goals to the #4 Netherlands, who average 7 goals per match. They managed to hold them to 3 goals and ended the game in a draw. The Brazilian offense’s explosiveness and the lack of Canadian offense and lapses in defense are just enough to give the edge for Brazil to take this match.
Pick: Brazil Moneyline (-105)
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Cameron Lynch is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Cameron, check out his archive and follow him @captron26.