Iceland Holds U.S Scoreless to Gain Tie

If a women’s professional soccer league is launched in the United States next year, a teenage goalkeeper from Iceland might have earned herself a starting spot on one of its teams.

Thora Helgadottir, 19, played a spectacular match Saturday night, making 11 saves, many of them dramatic, and shutting out the world and Olympic champion U.S. team as Iceland gained a 0-0 tie in front of 10,315 at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

It was only the fifth time that the American team has been held scoreless in the last 10 years.

“Their goalkeeper made every save in the book, high, low, crosses, breakaways,” U.S. Coach April Heinrichs said. “She was terrific, but not just their goalkeeper, every player really came out and played with pride on the Iceland team.

“The result today was 50 percent about Iceland’s effort and 50 percent about the game of soccer that can be generous on some days and stingy on other days”

Added U.S. defender Brandi Chastain: “Sometimes you do all the right things and one player has a spectacular game and that was their goalkeeper tonight. She made remarkable saves that she didn’t make on Wednesday [when the U.S. won a closed-door match, 8-0].

“Iceland is not in the Olympics, but today was their Olympic Games.”

And especially Helgadottir’s.