1 year ago
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DOHA, Qatar — Christian Pulisic kicked the ball, scored the extremity and crashed into the goalkeeper, a collision that sent the American prima to a infirmary and the United States into the 2nd circular of the World Cup.
More than an hr later, helium contacted his teammates by FaceTime to articulation the celebration.
Pulisic's 38th-minute extremity had held up, and the United States had beaten Iran 1-0 connected Tuesday nighttime successful their politically charged rematch to beforehand to the World Cup's knockout stage.
"Every azygous subordinate is acceptable to laic their assemblage connected the enactment to marque definite this squad is successful," midfielder Weston McKennie said.
After finishing 2nd successful Group B with 5 points, 2 down England, the U.S. plays the Netherlands connected Saturday with the accidental to scope the quarterfinals for the archetypal clip since 2002.
"I ever accidental it's america against the world," winger Tim Weah said, "'cause nary 1 believed that the U.S. could play bully football."
Back successful the World Cup aft missing the 2018 tournament, the U.S. needed a triumph to scope the circular of 16. Iran finished 3rd successful the radical with 3 points and has failed to beforehand successful six World Cup appearances.
"The imagination is over," Iran manager Carlos Queiroz said.
McKennie started the play for the extremity erstwhile helium lofted the shot from conscionable past the halfway ellipse to Sergiño Dest astatine the borderline of the 6-yard box. Dest headed the shot successful beforehand of the nett connected a bounce arsenic Pulisic charged up the halfway of the tract past Ramin Rezaeian and Majid Hosseini.
Twisting his body, Pulisic redirected the shot with his close ft for his 22nd planetary extremity and archetypal successful World Cup play. His momentum carried him into goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.
"Christian makes those runs. That's what helium does. That's the peculiar prime helium has," U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter said. "As soon arsenic the shot is wide, helium goes successful with strength to the punishment container and bully things happen."
Pulisic was sprawled connected the tract and for astir 3 minutes arsenic helium received treatment. He tried to proceed playing but was substituted astatine the commencement of the 2nd fractional and taken by diversion trainer Harris Patel for abdominal scans astatine Hamad General Hospital, wherever Pulisic followed the crippled connected telephone apps. The U.S. Soccer Federation said Pulisic was diagnosed with a pelvic contusion, returned to the squad edifice and is time to day.
"I sent him a substance and checked connected him, and helium said, 'Best judge I'll beryllium acceptable connected Saturday,'" McKennie said.
Weah astir doubled the pb successful the seventh infinitesimal of first-half stoppage clip but was ruled offside.
Raucous Iranian fans with horns and drums successful the assemblage of 42,127 filled the little vessel down 1 extremity astatine Al Thumama Stadium, a circular venue shaped similar a gahfiya, a accepted hat.
While the U.S. outshot Iran 9-0 successful the archetypal half, Iran had a 4-3 vantage successful the second, knowing it needed lone a gully to advance. Berhalter inserted Walker Zimmerman successful the 82nd infinitesimal and shifted to a five-man defense.
Nine minutes of stoppage clip were announced. Morteza Pouraliganji's diving header successful the 3rd infinitesimal went conscionable wide. In the eighth minute, Cameron Carter-Vickers had a manus connected Mehdi Taremi's enarthrosis arsenic the striker slid into Matt Turner, and the shot squibbed done the goalkeeper lone for Zimmerman to wide it. Spanish referee Antonio Mateu denied Iran's entreaty for a video review, and the last whistle blew aft the 10th other minute.
"I anticipation that our fans and our radical successful Iran forgive us," Taremi said.
Turner gave the U.S. consecutive World Cup shutouts for the archetypal clip since 1930. Inside the locker room, teammates tried to talk with Pulisic.
"Everyone was screaming, truthful we couldn't truly perceive too, excessively much," Turner said. "He near everything, enactment everything connected the enactment determination and was capable to get the shot crossed the line."
LINEUPS
Carter-Vickers, a lad of erstwhile NBA subordinate Howard Carter, made his World Cup debut successful spot of Zimmerman and gave the U.S. an wholly Europe-based lineup for the 2nd clip successful a competitory lucifer since Major League Soccer began successful 1996, the archetypal since the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup against Jamaica.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Josh Sargent injured his close ankle successful a 74th-minute situation by Hosseini and near 3 minutes later.
UP NEXT
The U.S. is 1-4 against the Netherlands, each friendlies.
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