Pre-match: USA v Australia Game 2 6/19 3 pm ET

Adams or Tillman (whoever is deeper) should be Irankunda’s shadow when we press. Man to man all over the field?

 

I didn’t see the game because it was on at the ungodly hour of midnight ET. But from what I can tell, Oz used the classic approach that we used to: absorb pressure well, rely on big defenders to win aerial battles and be dangerous on set pieces, and rely on athleticism to strike on the counter. I am also reminded of the WCQ game in Canada in 2022 when the Canucks used this approach against us with consummate success, ceding possession but defending so well we looked impotent offensively and then being clinical when they countered for a 2-0 win. It was frustrating for us and admirable by them.

So how do we not get suckered into another rope-a-dope as we did those six years ago? One thing is that we need to dribble and pass through their defense, not try to pump in hopeful crosses from outside the 18 yard box. I’m not sure why Turkey didn’t do this, but we have grown a lot since 22 and have even more talent up front (e.g., Balo), so while they’ll be tough to break down, I think with a relentless approach we can get after them.

It’s Oz on the counter that worries me more. We’re just not as organized defensively as I'd like, and we’ve conceded goals pretty much every game that I can remember (when was the last time we shut someone out?). Nor do we have the kind of GK that can win games for you. Oz is going to get some SOGs and Freese is going to need to have a few moments where he makes a big save. When it was Friedel, Keller, or Howard (and maybe even 21/22 Turner) I felt like our goalkeeping could erase a few defensive mistakes. Now that margin for error is gone.

If we win this game it'll be like 2-1, maybe 3-1. I could see a 1-1 draw. And as with Canada 22 we could be frustrated throughout and stung by some counters and lose 0-2, though I don’t think it’s likely. As with Paraguay, an early goal could make a huge difference. Honestly anything can happen, as this group has already predicted. If anyone called us beating Paraguay 4-1 and Oz beating Turkey 2-0, then they’re a freaking Nostradamus because neither outcome was even remotely expected. So maybe we should just expect the unexpected again.

 

The saves are misleading. He made a great one to fingertip a shot from deep onto the post in the first half. And 2 OK ones off freekicks. Eveeything else was pretty routine at best. Another from a tight angle where he stayed on the near post well.

They shot a lot but were rarely dangerous. One clean look from close was straight at the GK.

 

I agree that its unlikely you can win 2 consecutive games this way. However, pumping balls in the air is not the way to beat Australia. I watched their game and their center backs are big and physical. But they are also relatively slow. They cover up weaknesses in their defense by staying so compact.

I would also say that their goalkeeper was not really tested. Yes he made 8 saves but many of them were weak shots. He didn't face anything like the shots from Balo or Reyna.

The US does need to be careful on their counters. While the overall Aussie team is weak in ball progression and speed, they do have speed at the wing up front. What I can't tell is what level of speed since frankly Turkey's team was pretty slow and methodical.

If the US gets the first goal, I think Australia will have a tough day. On the other hand if Australia gets an opening goal then it will be bunker to the max and potentially a very frustrating game.

What we must do is move the ball quickly not slow and methodically like Turkey did in their game which gave the Aussie's all day to reset their defense. Quick interchanges and dribbling past players in Australia's final third should unbalance them and create excellent chances.

Attacking to the end line and pulling the ball back with Aussie defenders facing their own goal will be a problem for them. I would also give a green light for taking shots from within the penalty area and not overplaying the ball with extra passes. I am not convinced their keeper is very good. I don't think he is even up to MLS levels.

 

Did you watch the game?

 

Just watched the Turkiye-Aussie replay:

• Scoring first will be very helpful. Australia like Paraguay will need to throw Plan A out the window.
  
  
• Turkiye was slow on both ends and both Aussie goals were eminently preventable, the second Aussie goal a wonder strike from distance. Türkiye’s higher xG not surprising.
  
  
• i was surprised the Turks (can you say that?) didn’t stretch the field and overload the wings more with runners going in behind the defenders. The few times the Turks did it, they were effective.
  
  
• The US ran runners behind Paraguay’s defenders very well, finding gaping holes in the seams - Balogun, Pulisic on the left and Dest and McK on the right are both effective. The Aussie 5 in the back will be tighter but breachable. Game on!

 

The cockiness is ridiculous. I feel like none of these people watch the sport. One blowout against a team that inexplicably played a midblock after being a low block team for the last two year, and people forget us losing to Canada (shockingly similar to Australia), losing to Panama three times in the past few years, tying El Salvador, etc., etc.

Most of this World Cup so far -- and most of the rest -- will be grindy. Australia may or may not be better; it doesn't really matter. They are solid defensively and have some speed. Good enough to be a real issue.

 

if i were a turkish player watching guler hit his 11th shot from 30 yards i would have suggested maybe its not his night...

 

I really wonder how much even our own staff knows about the Australian keeper.

He came into this tournament with only 2 caps (1 of them in a friendly last week), he's only played two seasons as a professional in the Australian league, and he was apparently assumed to be the 3rd choice keeper when the roster was named. (The presumed #1 was Mathew Ryan, who is literally their captain, starts in La Liga, and has over 100 caps.)

 

I think anyone saying "we're better than Australia" is missing the point even if they are correct.

They are extremely well organized defensively, have a quality keeper, insane size in defense, are young, athletic and have a couple of burners. That combination is just a problem.

Does it matter that Irankunda isn't Alphonso Davies or peak Landon Donovan? No. Because if a team stays very disciplined, it's extremely hard to score on them. And the way Australia plays, it's going to be very hard to pull them out of shape if they are smart. Australia isn't going to make the mistakes Paraguay made tactically.

And our team makes mistakes defensively.

There's a version of this game where we score early and it opens up, and that's to our advantage. However, there's versions of this game that are scoreless longer and we start to get frustrated. Or Australia scores early and they bunker like hell.

Turkey was freaking clueless on how to attack a set defense. They were arrogant and had zero plan in the first half, and in the second it was Yildaz dribble or Guler dribble and that was it. There was zero off ball movement. Guler would do something and then ... nowhere to go. They were slow on the break because everything had to go through Guler.

We'll be better. But it's still going to be frustrating. We're still going to try crosses that have no shot. Christian will likely still overdribble on the side; Dest, too.

Poch needs to have a plan for a team attack -- pull them back, vertical movement, horizontal movement, combination play, etc.

And we need to come out and counterpress like we did last game. We work that hard, we will likely win. But this is going to be like playing Canada.

 

forget ream- he gave richards and freeman fits when we played them.

 

They will absolutely do this. They have no reason to come out wide on us with those monster CBs. Though Wes and Malik are good in the air.

You can't slice through a compact defense easily. You either have absolute brilliance or pull them apart.

 

Well I agree with your last paragraph. Totally disagree with your first. You can't compare this team to what happened in those previous matches. Apples and oranges.

 

Defend and counter is smart for Australia, as it was for the US for years. As it's a good gameplan for Canada at this point.

It's not a good long term strategy for winning, because the lack of control means that you can get into a game state for which you don't have a good plan, and that makes it hard to win over time. But many teams don't have the talent to play a better strategy.

I'm not scared of Australia, but I also think deriding a 20 year old Irankunda, or pretending that we will slice through them like Paraguay is ridiculously off base.

A well organized defense can shut down basically any team. We're not prime Spain here, and we know what we did in the Confederations Cup. To act like we're likely to put 4 goals and tear them apart seems pretty arrogant to me. Add in our defensive lapses and it's a recipe for a tough game.

Does that mean Australia is the better team or the favorite to win? No, but so much of this conversation sounds like our fanbase commenting before every single CONCACAF qualifier to be befuddled after.

Irankunda was at Bayern. He got off to a great start in the Champo but got benched. I don't know why. But he's 20; things change quickly now. I don't think he's Jeremy Doku, but his speed is an issue. Toure isn't much older and he tore up the Champo -- people love to hype our Champo strikers, well both of these guys have been as good. We've been burned by worse.

 

Do you think the team is suddenly going to play like against Paraguay in every game ever again?

i am hopeful for this team, but Spain and France aren't going to come out of this with an average +3 GD per game ... we aren't.

 

Turkey looked lazy and a bit clueless to me. Yildaz tries to dribble three guys. Guler tries to dribble into the middle. No one else on the team moves a foot as they watch. Rinse. Repeat.

 

June 7, 2025 USA 1 x 2 Türkiye
Oct 14, 2025 USA 2 x 1 Australia
Nov 15, 2025 USA 2 x 1 Paraguay
December 6, 2025 WC Draw

What an amazing coincidence that the USA plays friendlies with the same exact teams in its group stage, in reverse order, before the World Cup draw!

Anyone still think the World Cup draw is not rigged?
Of course it is rigged!

 

This is the comment I came here to make. That, plus crosses need to be more typically on the ground than in the air.

My approach would be to create overloads out wide and force the Aussies into a 5 back instead of a 3 back, and then try to hit runners like Wes or Tillman or Dest as the come into the box.

I believe Ream’s pace is underrated by the consensus here, but my dudes, he ain’t FAST. He’s got a bit of pace even at his age, but I’d still consider Trusty, or maybe even Miles.

I’d also prep some set pieces. If we need a goal late, look for Berhalter coming in for that purpose.

 

In the Turkey match, Australia had 4 players who posted top sprint speeds of over 33.00 km/h, including Mohammed Toure at 35.8 and Jordan Bos at an astonishing 36.7. In the Paraguay match, Enciso at 33.3 and Jedi at 34.00 were the only Paraguay and US players to post top speeds of over 33.00 km/h.

 

This thread has, so far, been below standard.

 

it’s not rigged. Draw is done in public with ping pong balls in each pot. Unless they labeled all the balls “Paraguay” in Pot 2, then quickly switched the pot before picking next group. Or maybe there was some invisible braille/sticker lining on ball so the person knew who to pick.
Also - didn’t Shaq pick some of the balls? You think he could be in on this?

 

With all the videos out there of how we methodically pulled apart Paraguay, I'm confident we will have a good game plan for Australia. Of course, they are good and the team is taking them seriously. Which allows us the fans to be more ridiculous.
They have 4 days to focus on them and showing how the Turkey players were arrogant and lost. Poch won't let that happen.