In front of a roaring Seattle crowd, the U.S. men’s soccer team on Friday defeated Australia 2-0 in its second World Cup match, clinching a spot in the Round of 32 in the process.
Despite missing star attacking midfielder Christian Pulisic to a calf injury, the U.S. put on a spectacular performance against a gritty Australian team.
The U.S. showed that its 4-1 win over Paraguay in its opener was no fluke. From the first whistle, the U.S. took control of the game, dominating possession and putting the Socceroos on their heels.
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The U.S. opened the scoring in the 11th minute with an own goal from Australia’s Cameron Burgess, who mishandled a brilliant run and pass from U.S. forward Folarin Balogun into his own net.
U.S. right back Alex Freeman — the youngest player on the team at 21 and son of Super Bowl champion Antonio Freeman —doubled the score in the 43rd minute when he put in a header off a deflected shot that rebounded off Australia’s defensive line for his first career World Cup.
The win puts the U.S. at the top of Group G with 6 points. It faces Turkey in its final match on June 25 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
Australia was never able to recreate the magic of its World Cup opener last week, when it shocked Turkey 2-0. Sitting on 3 points, it will likely need at least a tie in its final group match against Paraguay to ensure it goes through to the next round.
Prior to the match, U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said he wanted his team to match Australia’s intensity.
“I think we need to play on the edge of the line,” Pochettino said, “with not crossing the lines of the rules.”
The last time the Americans served as World Cup hosts in 1994, they advanced by being one of the best third-place teams. They then lost to eventual champion Brazil in their next match, which was in the round of 16.
This is a developing story and will be updated.