The US men’s national team (USMNT) secured a spot in the World Cup knockout rounds with a 2-0 win over Australia in Seattle on Friday.
USMNT Dominates Australia
The USMNT, led by coach Mauricio Pochettino, dominated the game, controlling the ball with a 70% rate in the first half. The team opened the scoring early with an own goal by Australian defender Cameron Burgess in the 11th minute. Alex Freeman scored the second goal in the 43rd minute, heading home a deflected shot.
Australia offered little in attack in the first half but made a triple change to start the second half, bringing on rising youngster Nestory Irankunda. Despite the changes, the USMNT’s backline, led by Tim Ream and Chris Richards, managed to maintain a clean sheet, the first time the US did so in 10 games.
The US will close out the group stage next Thursday in Los Angeles against Turkiye, while Australia will take on Paraguay with both teams’ knockout chances still alive.
Original reporting: NBC Connecticut (Hartford) — read the source article.
