The USMNT were once again jumped out to an early lead, and it was once again thanks to an own goal scored by their opponent. This time it was Folarin Balogun with the drive and a ball across the face of goal that Australia’s Cameron Burgess accidentally sent to the back of the net. In Burgess’s defense the ball most certainly would have been put home by Ricardo Pepi had Burgess not gotten a foot to it, and he was working with some tight angles attempting to deflect the ball.
Speaking of Ricardo Pepi, he was the lone change coming into the lineup as he replaced Christian Pulisic who was ruled out of the match at the last minute due to the calf injury that he picked up in the first half of the US opener against Paraguay.
The games started in similar fashion but would play out pretty differently with today’s match being much more physical and rugged than the opener. One consistency was the US dominating possession in the first half though it lacked the fluidity of the Paraguay match. Despite the more rugged nature the US would once again pick up a goal just before the half, as Alex Freeman headed home a deflected Sergino Dest shot following a free kick.
The Australians would see a bit more possession in the second half and things got progressively more physical, including five second half yellow cards handed out, but they were unable to break through and the US would pick up the 2-0 win, guaranteeing their place in the knockout rounds and needing just a Turkey loss or draw later Friday, or a draw of their own next week to clinch first place in the group.
Antonee Robinson, Folarin Balogun, and Chris Richards all picked up yellow cards but those will be wiped out following the next match (which may not even be significant) so there should be minimum concern there. IN all it was good to see the US walk away with the win and apparently unscathed physically as well though there were some close calls.
The US have now won by 2+ in each of their first two matches and will be moving on to the knockout rounds, they have goal contributions from several players with Folarin Balogun and Own Goal leading the way. They also held the clean sheet in this match while once again conceding very few opportunities to the opponent (right around 0.5 xG in both matches). We’re heading into the weekend on a high note and celebrating the players, who do you have coming out on top? At SSFC we don’t tell you who you think should be the MOTM, we want to hear from you, who is your top player? Hit the ratings below and let us know who you think were the outstanding performers in tonight’s match.
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