Australia & Türkiye

AUSTRALIA

I got to downtown Seattle at 6:50 for a 7 AM pregame with other soccer dorks.  Let me tell you, the city was already buzzing at this crazy hour for a noon kickoff.  When I headed in around 10:30 it was absolute madness outside Lumen Field. Every single bar/restaurant had a watch party and was packed to the gills. 

Once inside the atmosphere was absolutely electric again, especially in the first half.  I feel like the noise kind of faded in the second half due to a few factors.  Without a cloud in the sky the sun was just beating down on everyone and the Socceroos decided to make things ugly.  I think LA was louder overall but air conditioning, being inside and total domination will do that.

Aussie coach Tony Popovic made the curious decision not to start both goal scorers from their previous match; Nestory Irankunda and Connor Meltcalfe.  I don’t know what his plan was, but thanks!  For us Christian Pulisic didn’t dress (left calf) and Ricardo Pepi started in his place.  USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino (Poch) was given lots of credit for changing his formation to include two strikers up top in a 4-4-2.  I think that had some effect, but really it looked like the players knew where the spaces were and how to exploit them again.

Folarin Balogun created the early own goal by leaving his man in the dust.  Then just before halftime Alex Freeman headed in a loose ball after a corner kick for the second.  Popovic brought on Irankunda and Metcalfe to start the second half and Australia began fouling us more.  These two factors made the second half a little tough to watch, but the Socceroos did threaten us a few times. 

It’s hard to say the result was ever in doubt though.  In the end we secured the three points and won the group thanks to Türkiye not being able to score against a low block.  This is also the first time the USMNT has won two World Cup matches in the same tournament since 1930.

PLAYERS

Matt Freese – Made his first two World Cup saves but was shaky with his decision making and distribution.

Tim Ream – Was beaten for speed a few times.

Chris Richards – Put out several fires for the backline but picked up a yellow card in the 90+3.

Freeman – Beyond the goal he put in a good shift on defense too.  His combination of recovery speed and strength is something special.  Man of the Match performance.

Antonee Robinson – Kind of an off day for him and picked up a yellow in the 56^th minute.

Tyler Adams – Another solid defensive match for him and played some nice passes as well.

Malik Tillman – Maybe our best player through two matches.  Was visibly exhausted late.

Sergiño Dest – Quiet day for him but had some nice shots from distance.

Weston McKennie – Was involved in most of our good offensive movements.

Pepi – Pressed hard on defense but wasn’t much of a factor on offense.

Balogun – Causing the own goal aside, was very wasteful with his touch and let several good scoring opportunities go wanting.  Also picked up a yellow in the 89^th.

Sebastian Berhalter – Looked off the pace for the second match in a row.  Gave the ball away in a dangerous area with his first touch on the pitch.

Auston Trusty – Had a very nervy moment in first World Cup action.

Joe Scally – Also looked anxious on the biggest stage for the first time.

Gio Reyna – Didn’t do much in a 3-minute cameo.

Haji Wright – Had maybe a quarter-chance in his three minutes.

TÜRKIYE

We played Ay-Yildizlilar in East Hartford, CT on 6/7/25 and lost 1-2. I watched this match and it was all one-way traffic in the first half. Türkiye took their foot off the gas in the second half seemingly to not embarrass us.  Granted, only five current World Cup starters saw the pitch that day; Freese (his debut) Tillman, Freeman, Richards (all went 90) and Adams (45).  Still though, the Turks worked us over pretty well.

Right now, the USMNT is 22^nd in ELO and Ay-Yildizlilar 25^th. Türkiye has some very talented players in Arda Güler (Real Madrid), Kenan Yildiz (Juventus) and Hakan Çalhanoğlu (Inter Milan).  Most of their regulars play in the Turkish Super Lig though, which is maybe even or a level below MLS.  We still probably have more talent “on paper,” but the discrepancy isn’t as big as the last two matches for us.

This is a very difficult match to predict because the Turks are already eliminated and we have advanced in first place.  I was originally excited for the matchup because I figured it would be our first real test of actual soccer.  Now it’s a “dead rubber” and I don’t know what to think?  The referee for this match is Mustapha Ghorbal from Algeria.  He’s got plenty of FIFA experience, but I don’t have a feel for how African refs call things.  The VAR is from Germany, which I like.

This is a national embarrassment for the people of Türkiye.  This was their first World Cup in 24 years, and they finished in third place last time in 2002.  Expectations were huge, but they fell flat on their faces.  Will their coach Vincenzo Montella play all his best players, or will he rotate younger guys in to get them experience?  Will the players be getting after it or going through the motions?  I have no idea, but I think if they get down a few goals early, they will fold like a house of cards.

For Poch the calculus is much more difficult.  Does he rest some players or fully rotate the entire squad and punt on the match entirely?  This might sound crazy in a World Cup, but the Pochettino era has basically been defined by trying out different players and tactics that didn’t work at all.  If he does do that and we get embarrassed, he risks losing some of the crazy momentum that has been building for both the team and fans alike. In the end I think he tries to strike some kind of balance.

You can’t risk the four players with yellow cards getting suspended for the Round of 32.  This means no Balogun, Adams, Robinson or Richards.  Then it would make sense to give the guys who have played heavy minutes some rest.  With so much time between matches in this World Cup they still need to work their legs out a little though.  Whether it’s at halftime or the 60-minute mark, all of McKennie, Tillman, Dest, Freeman and Ream need to come out.  Pulisic has been back training with the team this week.  If he won’t risk reinjury, it would be wise to give him 30 to shake any rust off.  Freese needs more confidence in front of goal, so he stays as the starter there. 

I really don’t know how Poch will manage who is in the starting XI, who comes in as a sub and how many minutes each player gets.  It seems like Cristian Roldan won’t be able to play due to a muscle strain.  That leaves 18 field players available for selection, and he can only play 15.  I hope he at least sticks with the 3-4-2-1 formation, but if I’ve learned anything over the past 21 months, it’s that Poch is unpredictable.  Whatever he decides, given what he’s accomplished thus far in the World Cup, he’s earned my trust.