The Rondo, Women's Olympics edition: USWNT predictions, breakout players, and why Spain will win it all

Amee Ruszkai: The USWNT can get to a medal match. Spain is the big obstacle on that quest but if La Roja wins Group C and the U.S. finishes in the top two in its group, the pair will be on opposite sides of the draw. Given the shortcomings of other nations and the talent at its own disposal, the USWNT should be capable of navigating the first knockout round and getting to the semifinals. Whether it can go further depends on the attack clicking, for sure, but it would be underwhelming if the four-time Olympic champion wasn’t battling for at least Bronze.

Ryan Tolmich: There are no guarantees in this tournament. The U.S. has a strong group featuring Germany, Australia and Zambia, but the fact that third-place teams advance should get the U.S. into the knockouts. It's a gauntlet from there, one that will all depend on seeding. Because of that, we'll say the U.S. wins in the quarters before narrowly falling to another one of the tournament's elite in the semis. The Bronze medal game, it is.

Celia Balf: They will get out of the group stage, despite a couple of hard games against Australia, Zambia, and Germany. If they do that slightly unscathed, they will go to the gold medal game. Not entirely sure they will win the whole thing, though, only because you need to score goals - and that's been a problem area.

AR: It feels impossible to look beyond Spain. The World Cup winner is the best team on the planet right now, because of its incredible talent and ability to get over the line but also due to issues that exist for all other nations at the Olympics that could be considered a contender to win gold.

The U.S. has only been under Hayes’ charge for a few weeks, Australia has injury concerns, France and Japan are still yet to prove themselves in the biggest moments and it doesn’t feel as if Brazil, Germany or Canada have taken big enough steps to go from World Cup group stage flops to gold medalists in just 12 months.

RT: Spain are the favorites here once again. The team's superstars are still here, and they have no head coaching baggage to deal with this time around. Patri Guijarro, Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmati are legit superstars, with the latter in contention to claim another Ballon d'Or this year. Good luck stopping them. This team is too talented not to push for another gold.

CB: USWNT or Spain, though it wouldn't be a complete surprise to see Japan win gold.

AR: TrinityRodman, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson, with Jaedyn Shaw able to impact from the bench and even get a start or two, given how compact the Olympic schedule is. There’s understandably a lot of excitement about the 19-year-old and she could impress enough in the tournament to usurp someone else and nail down a starting role in the attack, but it makes sense to go with Rodman, Smith and Swanson from the get-go in terms of a little bit more experience to go with that dangerous talent.

RT: It may have left fans wanting more during the send-off friendlies, but the best group is probably still Smith, Swanson and Rodman. Yes, there's an argument to be made for Shaw, and a strong one at that, but the chemistry between that front three is easy to see. Shaw, meanwhile, can be used as a supersub or as a No. 10, which gives the U.S. a more attacking threat.

CB: Swanson, Smith, Rodman - that's their ideal front 3 right now, even though when Shaw is up there she creates problems. Those three have the most chemistry, but no one has stepped up as the natural goal scorer for the national team (at least of late).

AR: There are going to be a lot of exciting forwards on show at the Games and it would be really easy to pick one, but to mix things up let’s highlight Patri Guijarro. Guijarro sits at the base of the Barcelona midfield and excels as the best No. 6 in women’s soccer, her intelligent reading of the game and ability in and out of possession allowing Ballon d’Or winners such as Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmati to thrive further forward.

After nearly two years away from the national team, waiting for improvements within the federation, she’s returned just in time for this Olympics and it could be the stage she needs to finally get some of that recognition others around her do. Guijarro improves the reigning world champion. Keep an eye on her and watch how easy she makes the beautiful game look.

RT: The USWNT's Achilles heel has been scoring goals, and there's no player in that team that can score like Smith. The goals dried up for a spell she was clearly lacking confidence, but the Portland Thorns star scored a few in the run-up this summer to get that confidence back. The U.S. defense is very good and the midfield is solid, but this team will live and die by the attack. If the goals aren't there - as they weren't last summer - then it could be another short run.

CB: Easy choice: Barbra Banda, from Zambia.

AR: There’s always pressure in this job but this feels like as free a pass at a tournament as any USWNT coach could get. If the U.S. doesn’t do well, then it’s understandable considering Hayes has had less than two months to solely focus on preparing the team. If there is success in France, then what a fantastic job she’s done in such little time.

RT: Not really? The short-term matters, obviously, but Hayes was brought in to rebuild this program long-term. Because of that, anything that goes well this summer is basically just a bonus. The U.S. will expect to compete, yes, because that's what this program does. But it isn't like years past in which it was always "gold or failure."

CB: There's always pressure on managers at this level, and Hayes is no exception. But not sure it bothers her. She has a brilliant soccer mind, a tactful approach, and gets on well with the team in a way that she feels pressure, but not in a way that's any more than any of the players with the crest on their chest.