2-0 victory
No Pulisic, no problem – US men’s national team dismantles Australia to advance
©IMAGO
All the talk ahead of the match was about Christian Pulisic. Would the AC Milan star be fit in time to feature for the US men’s national team against Australia? Ultimately, the answer was no. The winger,who has been held by injuries throughout his career, had to look on from the bench as his teammates took to the field. And the captain will have liked what he saw. The United States defeated Australia 2-0 thanks to an own goal by Cameron Burgess (11’) and a header by Alex Freeman (44’).
The result means the United States are in an excellent position to win Group D. Only Türkiye, with a win against Paraguay and a win over the United States on the final matchday, could still catch the United States. The first tiebreaker at this tournament is the head-to-head for teams with the same number of points during the group stages. It would be only the third time in history that the United States has won its group. The US won their group at the 1930 and 2010 World Cup. It is the first time since 1930 that the US have won back-to-back games at the World Cup.
Club Comparison
United States
Australia
World Cup
World Cup
€385.65m
Market Value
€77.45m
National Team
League Level
National Team
0
Expenditures 25/26
0
Mauricio Pochettino
Managers
Tony Popovic
Full Club Comparison
As for Australia, they were excellent against Türkiye but really struggled to make anything happen against a well-organized US side. Surprisingly, Australia’s head coach Tony Popovic opted to leave off Nestory Irankunda from his starting XI. Together with Mohamed Touré, he was instrumental in Australia’s 2-0 win over Türkiye. Together, their pace could have been an issue for the US defence built around veteran Tim Ream. With Touré playing the first half and Irankunda the second, the US did a good job isolating the respective attackers to secure the win.
Player Comparison
Tim Ream
Nestory Irankunda
Charlotte FC
Watford FC
€150k
Market Value
€8.00m
38
Age
20
Centre-Back
Position
Right Winger
31/12/2026
Contract until
30/06/2030
Full Player Comparison
Pulisic injury concern – Australia match a blueprint to win without him?
With the win in the bag, the focus will once again switch to Pulisic’s health. Can the winger recover in time to be a factor later in the tournament? Head coach Mauricio Pochettino opted for a 3-3-2-2. Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest provided pace on either flank with two targets, Ricardo Pepi and Folarin Balogun providing options in the middle. The setup provided both pace and defensive stability. But a pacy winger of Pulisic’s quality would certainly make a big difference against a Türkiye side that might be in a desperate position depending on the result against Paraguay.
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