Mexican fans cheer their squad on against the U.S. Tuesday.

VANCOUVER, B.C.—Normally, a country's hosting of a soccer tournament guarantees it will receive a home-field advantage from local fans. Mexico women's soccer coach Leonardo Cuellar thinks that may not be the case when his team faces Canada in a crucial CONCACAF Olympic qualifying semifinal match Friday, though. Mexican fans outnumbered and outshouted American supporters in their team's 4-0 loss to the U.S. Tuesday night, and Cuellar said in a post-match press conference that situation may happen again when they face Canada Friday (11 p.m. Eastern, Sportsnet).

"I know we are away, but you saw the crowd," he said. "Don't be surprised if we have more Mexicans than Canadians on Friday."

Krieger

VANCOUVER, B.C.—The U.S. women's soccer team's run to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament has been led by a series of unlikely heroines, but the most remarkable may be a player who isn't even in town. Right back Ali Krieger was seriously hurt in the Americans' first game against the Dominican Republic, tearing both her ACL and MCL, and she may be out even through the Olympics themselves. Despite flying home Monday to have surgery, though, she was still very much in the minds of the remaining U.S. players in Tuesday's 4-0 win over Mexico. Midfielder Carli Lloyd, who led the Americans with a hat trick Tuesday, said she was inspired by Krieger.

"I dedicate that win to her, I dedicate my hat trick to her," Lloyd said. "It's unfortunate she couldn't be with us."

The absence of Krieger, a reliable wingback who started every U.S. game in the 2011 World Cup, has hit the whole team hard. The Americans have a great deal of depth and have dominated every game they've played, so losing Krieger to injury hasn't doomed them, but she's still very much in the minds of the team. On Tuesday night, they wrote "Liebe" (German for "love") on their arms to honor her, as Krieger has a "Liebe" tattoo. U.S. striker Abby Wambach said afterwards the idea came from third goalkeeper Jill Loyden, and it inspired the team.

Carli Lloyd battling against Mexico's Veronica Perez Tuesday.VANCOUVER, B.C.—A recurring theme of the U.S. women's soccer team's experience at the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament thus far has been unlikely heroines stepping up to provide the scoring, including Amy Rodriguez's five-goal outburst against the Dominican Republic and Sydney Leroux's five goals against Guatemala. It was a similar story that played out again Tuesday night at B.C. Place, with midfielder Carli Lloyd notching a hat trick that proved crucial in the Americans' 4-0 win over Mexico. Lloyd's presence was crucial to the U.S. victory Tuesday, but she said afterwards having so many different players step up over the course of this tournament illustrates how much talent the Americans have.

"We have a tremendous amount of depth," Lloyd said. "It's great. This is the time to get young players out on the field, get experience, gain confidence. That's huge for our team and I think it's going to be a good year for us."

Lloyd, who now has five goals in this tournament, said she and her teammates were motivated by the loss they suffered against Mexico at the end of 2010 in World Cup qualifying.

"It was redemption for us," she said. "We came out strong and we knew we had to get it done."

Canada's Sophie Schmidt battles the Americans' Megan Rapinoe in a September friendly.

VANCOUVER, B.C.—When the U.S. team takes on Mexico for top place in Group B of the CONCACAF women's soccer Olympic qualifying tournament Tuesday night, there will be some particularly interested observers; the Canadian team. The Canadian players aren't planning to be in the building, but they'll likely be tuned in on television, and they have a lot riding on the outcome. Thanks to their 5-1 win over Costa Rica Monday, the Canadians have clinched top spot in Group A, and a draw or a U.S. victory Tuesday means Canada would face Mexico in the semifinals Friday, with an Olympic berth on the line. If the Americans lose, though, they'll wind up playing Canada Friday, which would spell the demise of the Olympic dream for one of the two top-ranked squads in this tournament.

On paper, at least, there's a substantial difference between facing the U.S. and Mexico. The Americans are the top-ranked team in the world, while FIFA has Mexico listed at 21st (Canada is 7th). Moreover, the U.S. has

Christine Sinclair scores her first goal against Costa Rica Monday.

VANCOUVER, B.C.—The Canadians did what they had to in order to clinch top spot in their group at the CONCACAF women's Olympic soccer qualifying tournament, coming away with a 5-1 victory over Costa Rica Monday night, but they did so in two remarkably different styles. In specific contrast to Saturday's 2-0 win over Cuba where the Canadians did just what was necessary, head coach John Herdman let slip the dogs of war from the opening kickoff Monday, and his team responded with a ferocious attacking effort that netted two goals in the first 10 minutes and four in the first half. The second half saw a more conservative possession-focused style, though, and it resulted in a goal for each team. Herdman said the shift was partly about resting players for the crucial semifinal Friday, but also about showing that the team has more than one approach.

Cuba's Yesenia Gallardo clears the ball away from Canada's Kaylyn Kyle Saturday.

VANCOUVER, B.C.—Necessity. It was the overarching word bouncing around the brain following Canada's 2-0 win over Cuba in the CONCACAF women's soccer Olympic qualifying tournament Saturday night. The Canadians' performance wasn't joyful, exuberant or particularly memorable, but they accomplished the needed goal, knocking off the overmatched Cubans and clinching a berth in the semifinal stage. This wasn't as solid of a showing as Canada's 6-0 win over Haiti in their first game or the Americans' 14-0 thumping of the Dominican Republic Friday, but it produced the desired result. For Canadian head coach John Herdman, that was more than enough.