Following its win over Australia, the US is sitting pretty in the World Cup, maintaining its momentum through a relentless attack
The absolute imperative was not to let their continued presence in the World Cup come down to the third match. The US men’s soccer team decisively didn’t.
On Friday afternoon in Seattle, the Americans followed up last week’s opening victory over Paraguay with an assertive 2-0 triumph over Australia to clinch a berth in the round of 32.
“I think only I can say good and fantastic things about my players,” declared US coach Mauricio Pochettino after his charged-up charges had advanced with a match to spare for the first time in tournament annals.
Hours later, they were cemented as winners of Group D, via Paraguay’s 1-0 victory over Turkey late Friday in Santa Clara, Calif. It’s the first time the Yanks have won their group since 2010, when they edged England on goals scored.
That time they did it with 5 points on two draws, plus Landon Donovan’s killer 91st-minute stroke that beat Algeria, 1-0. This time, the Americans grabbed 6 in just two outings.
The Yanks hadn’t won their first two Cup matches since they blanked Paraguay and Belgium at the inaugural 1930 event. They’d had two chances since and let both slip away.
After stunning Portugal in 2002, the US had South Korea on the ropes before conceding the equalizer in the 78th minute. After beating Ghana in 2014, the Americans let the Portuguese escape with a draw five minutes into stoppage time.
Both times, the US lost the finale and needed outside help to stay in the tournament. What this squad learned from their predecessors is that if you want to make a deep run in the Cup, you don’t settle for 1 point when you have 3 in your grasp.
And the proven way to get 3 points is to go after them early and relentlessly. That’s what the US did against Paraguay, netting three goals in the first half and keeping its foot on the throttle for a 4-1 decision.
Australia, which had blanked Turkey, 2-0, in its opener, figured to be more of a roadblock. The robust Socceroos put the Yanks through a physical grinder in last fall’s Colorado friendly before the hosts prevailed, 2-1.
“It’s going to be a wonderful clash,” US midfielder Tim Weah predicted.
The task was to mount a menacing attack without talisman forward Christian Pulisic, who set up the first two goals against Paraguay before coming off with a tight calf muscle and was on the sideline on Friday.
Pochettino could have gone pragmatic against an Aussie alignment that featured a double wall of yellow jerseys anchored by three 6-foot center backs (including captain Harry Souttar at 6-6) and another in keeper Patrick Beach.
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Instead he went with two strikers, putting Ricardo Pepi, who’d been left off the 2022 squad, alongside sniper Flo Balogun, who’d popped in a pair on the Paraguayans.
That wasn’t what Australia was expecting and it provided the US with a precious tally after just 11 minutes when defender Cameron Burgess, trying to keep Pepi from booting in Balogun’s feed, put the ball past Beach instead.
Own goals in their favor (five and counting) have been a lifeline for the Americans in Cups past. When they hosted in 1994, a miscue by ill-starred defender Andrés Escobar (later shot dead back home) got the Americans up and running in the second-game upset of Colombia in the Rose Bowl.
In the 2002 victory over Portugal, a gimme by Jorge Costa put the Yanks up, 2-0, on their way to 3-2.
In 2006, Cristian Zaccardo’s misclear gave them a 1-1 draw with Italy and kept them alive after an opening loss to the Czechs. And Paraguay’s Damián Bobadilla’s boo-boo jump-started the US after seven minutes this time. Who needs to score if your opponent will do it for you?
When rookie defender Alex Freeman headed in Sergino Dest’s shot off a free kick in the 43rd, the Americans figured to have sufficient goals against an Aussie side that doesn’t score many. What they needed to do was to close things out.
That wasn’t easy. Australia coach Tony Popovic held out starters Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe, who’d scored the goals against the Turks, to bring them in fresh for a second-half offensive.
The Americans, who didn’t go to their bench until the 74th minute, now were on the defensive. In the final dozen minutes, when Aussies were crowding into their box and the ball was in the air, a ricochet might have put the Socceroos in position to salvage a point.
But the US held on to a rare shutout. Now, with half a dozen points and a plus-5 goal differential posted on the table, the Americans can look ahead to the end of the month with well-earned optimism.
For decades, this was a team that was hesitant to drive forward and dare, lest they be driven back and defeated. With two victories, they’ve put the doubts and demons behind them.
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