Pulisic punches US into World Cup knockouts, but injury adds to attack concerns

DOHA, Qatar -- With a nonaccomplishment oregon gully capable to nonstop them home, the U.S. men's nationalist squad secured a captious 1-0 win implicit to Iran connected Tuesday to decorativeness 2nd successful Group B and beforehand to the knockout rounds of the 2022 World Cup.

Christian Pulisic scored the game's lone extremity successful the 38th minute, finishing from adjacent range. Pulisic suffered what looked to beryllium a little abdominal wounded connected the play, and had to beryllium substituted astatine halftime, and the U.S. seldom looked arsenic fluid successful onslaught again.

The U.S. was made to endure successful the game's second stages, but yet did capable to unafraid a triumph that sees the Americans scope the knockout stages for the 4th clip successful the past 5 World Cups successful which the USA has qualified.

JUMP TO: Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Post-match quotes | Key stats | Upcoming fixtures

Rapid reaction

1. Pulisic the hero, but pays a terms arsenic Americans beforehand to knockouts

Pulisic hasn't ever looked comfy being the look of this U.S. team, and contempt mounting up Tim Weah's extremity successful the opener against Wales, his play had blown hot-and-cold successful this World Cup. His execution during modulation opportunities hasn't been bully enough, and his acceptable pieces oftentimes failed to wide the archetypal man.

Tuesday's lucifer looked to beryllium much of the aforesaid successful the aboriginal going, arsenic the U.S. struggled to interruption down Iran's antiaircraft wall. But nary 1 could question Pulisic's committedness oregon bravery successful putting the U.S. connected apical successful the 38th minute. Weston McKennie pinged a shot to Sergiño Dest connected the close wing, and Dest threaded the shot crossed extremity to the on-rushing Pulisic to person from adjacent range.

Pulisic paid a terms for the tally, colliding with Iran keeper Alireza Beiranvand, and suffering a wounded that near him wincing successful pain. The gamely carried connected for the remainder of the half, but yet had to beryllium substituted, with Brenden Aaronson coming on.

The U.S. volition beryllium praying Pulisic recovers, arsenic the Americans mislaid thing with him nary longer connected the tract -- though portion of that was owed to Iran taking a much assertive posture successful attack.

The substitutions made by U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter seemed designed to spot the lucifer out, alternatively than power the tempo. The insertion of Walker Zimmerman, who was amazingly moved to the seat aft starting the USA's archetypal 2 games, saw the Americans spell with 5 successful the back.

The U.S. surely didn't adjacent retired the crippled successful textbook fashion, arsenic determination were plentifulness of anxious moments astatine the end. Zimmerman's precocious clearance successful stoppage clip defused a scary concern erstwhile a shot got down goalkeeper Matt Turner. But the U.S. got the occupation done.

The lucifer was seen arsenic thing of a referendum for this U.S. squad -- and Berhalter. A radical signifier exit would person been seen arsenic a nonaccomplishment fixed the endowment successful this U.S. side, and questions inactive stay astir the effectiveness of the U.S. attack, which scored conscionable 2 goals during the radical stage.

But acknowledgment to continued stellar play by the U.S. defense, this is simply a infinitesimal to celebrate, and the Americans tin present attack the knockout rounds with an cognition that it has thing to suffer and everything to gain.

2. The USA defense, and particularly Dest, excels

Berhalter made a brace of changes with his starting XI, putting halfway backmost Cameron Carter-Vickers alongside Tim Ream, portion up top, Josh Sargent was preferred astatine halfway guardant successful spot of Haji Wright.

The insertion of Carter-Vickers was a gamble fixed that not lone was it his archetypal crippled successful the tournament, but it was besides the archetypal clip helium and Ream had ever played together. Yet the duo looked similar they had been playing unneurotic for years, with 1 providing screen for the different connected the uncommon juncture that 1 of their teammates got beaten.

Ream was erstwhile again exceptional portion Carter-Vickers was steady. When the U.S. looks backmost connected this radical signifier campaign, it volition retrieve however the defence was breached lone erstwhile clip with goals conceded from the tally of play.

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But possibly the astir effectual defender connected the nighttime was Dest for what helium did connected the attacking end.

After a tepid opening by the U.S. erstwhile it seemed to person fewer ideas connected however to interruption done the Iran defense, it was Dest's quality to get guardant that gave the U.S. a spark with his hard, debased transverse successful the 17th infinitesimal causing immoderate chaos successful the Iran box, and a mazy tally successful the 30th infinitesimal was blocked, but seemed to springiness the U.S. much assurance successful attack.

All told, it was a difference-making show from Dest.

3. Iran can't repetition heroics of 1998

Matchups betwixt the USA and Iran are ever politically charged. One of those was successful the 1998 World Cup, erstwhile Iran recorded a celebrated triumph against the U.S. that eliminated the Americans from that tournament.

The governmental space was ratcheted up up of this lucifer aft societal media posts by the U.S. Soccer Federation displayed the Iran emblem with the emblem of the Islamic Republic removed. While the posts were intended to enactment protesters successful Iran pushing for much adjacent attraction of women pursuing the decease of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, a furor erupted. The offending posts were yet removed and replaced with the existent emblem displayed, but the pre-game somesthesia had already reached the boiling point.

The Iranian players were facing monolithic unit arsenic good fixed their amusement of enactment for the protesters earlier successful the tourney by not singing the nationalist anthem. The announced assemblage of 42,127 was firmly down Team Melli arsenic well, ratcheting up the expectations.

Yet Iran's manager, Carlos Queiroz, volition beryllium questioned astir the mode his squad started the match, delivering an oddly passive show successful the archetypal half.

Needing lone a gully to advance, Team Melli's program of sitting backmost and striking connected the antagonistic made sense, but it seemed to rob Iran of the aggression it showed successful the 2-0 triumph implicit Wales. Sardar Azmoun was often stranded up top, and Iran's modulation crippled struggled to drawstring unneurotic the benignant of passes that would endanger the U.S. defense.

It wasn't until the 52nd infinitesimal that Iran truthful overmuch arsenic registered a shot, with substitute Saman Ghoddos' close-range header going implicit the bar. Ghoddos threatened again successful the 65th minute, but his curling effort conscionable missed the target.

Desperate to find an equalizer that would nonstop them through, Iran pushed guardant more, and came adjacent connected a stoppage clip header from Morteza Pouraliganji went conscionable wide. That was followed by Zimmerman's captious clearance. Ultimately Team Melli couldn't find a mode past the U.S. and present find themselves eliminated from the tournament. Whether the players volition look repercussion astatine location volition beryllium a communicative worthy following.

Player ratings

USA: Matt Turner 6, Antonee Robinson 5, Tim Ream 7, Cameron Carter-Vickers 6, Sergino Dest 7, Yunus Musah 6, Tyler Adams 6, Weston McKennie 7, Christian Pulisic 6, Josh Sargent 6, Tim Weah 5.

Subs: Brenden Aaronson 5, Kellyn Acosta 5, Haji Wright 3, Walker Zimmerman 6, Shaq Moore 5

Iran: Alireza Beiranvand 6; Ramin Rezaeian 4, Morteza Pouraliganji 6, Majid Hosseini 6, Milad Mohammadi 4; Ali Gholizadeh 6, Ahmad Noorollahi 5, Saeid Ezatolahi 5, Ehsan Hajsafi 6; Sardar Azmoun 4, Mehdi Taremi 5.

Subs: Ali Karimi 5, Saman Ghoddos 6, Mehdi Torabi 5, Abolfazl Jalali 5, Karim Ansarifard 5

Best and worst performers

BEST: Sergino Dest, USA

It was Dest's attacking play connected the close flank that provided the champion attacking moments for the U.S., and his assistance acceptable up Pulisic for the captious goal.

WORST: Sardar Azmoun, Iran

Azmoun, truthful dynamic successful the triumph implicit Wales, was mode disconnected his game. He provided thing successful the mode of an attacking menace and was subbed astatine halftime.

Highlights and notable moments

All the information passim the archetypal fractional was successful Iran's extremity arsenic the Americans went toward extremity repeatedly. (The fractional ended with Iran generating 0.00 xG, oregon expected goals, an precocious stat measuring the likelihood of a squad scoring.)

The breakthrough yet came successful the 38th infinitesimal arsenic winger Christian Pulisic ran onto a transverse from right-back Sergino Dest.

The celebrations rapidly turned to concern, however, arsenic Pulisic stayed down connected the play, wincing successful symptom and clutching his little abdomen area.

After aesculapian valuation connected the sideline portion the crippled continued, Pulisic did instrumentality to the field, but helium was yet subbed disconnected astatine halftime for Brenden Aaronson.

Pulisic is helped disconnected the sideline aft scoring for the USMNT pic.twitter.com/6C2z6sKNAZ

After the match: What the players and managers said

U.S. men's nationalist squad manager Gregg Berhalter: "In the archetypal half, we showed what we could bash soccer-wise with a truly a bully archetypal half. The 2nd half, we showed what we could bash determination-wise. The guys grinded and person each azygous ounce of energy, and we're undefeated going into the adjacent round."

Berhalter connected Pulisic: "No update connected his status, but I've been saying each along, it's a fantastic happening erstwhile 1 of your champion players is 1 of your hardest working, and he's surely that. I can't accidental capable affirmative things astir Christian."

USMNT midfielder Weston McKennie: "We wanted to power our ain destiny, we knew we could grip it. And I mean, you guys tin spot -- I don't privation to accidental a atrocious word, but we're a truly adjacent radical of guys. We're brothers. We're -- [laughs]... We emotion this benignant of stuff, we emotion the pressure, we emotion the excitement. Because we're a young team, we person our ain swagger, we person our ain style, we person our ain mode that we play, the mode that we link with each different and you spot we did it today."

McKennie connected Pulisic's goal: "Obviously we're precise thankful that helium threw his assemblage there, but the happening is we person 20, 25 guys extracurricular of Christian that would bash the aforesaid thing, I believe. We cognize what our extremity is, we cognize what we privation to do, what we privation to accomplish, and everybody's acceptable to springiness everything. It's unfortunate helium had to travel retired from it, but if you spot the stature Christian has and he's throwing his assemblage connected the line, that should archer you capable of what this squad means and however adjacent this squad is."

Key stats (provided by ESPN Stats & Information)

• Since making his debut for the U.S. vs. Guatemala connected March 29, 2016, Christian Pulisic has contributed to 33 goals (22 goals and 11 assists) -- the astir of immoderate different subordinate successful that span.

• The USA completed 11 passes successful its series that led to Pulisic's goal, the team's longest series of passes starring to a extremity successful a World Cup crippled played since ESPN's dataset starts successful 1966.

• The USA's starting line-up had an mean property of 24 years and 321 days, which is the youngest starting line-up to instrumentality the tract yet astatine the 2022 World Cup. It's the fourth-youngest starting lineup for the USMNT astatine a World Cup.

• This crippled was defender Cameron Carter-Vickers' 12th cap, and the archetypal clip Carter-Vickers and Tim Ream person ever started a lucifer unneurotic oregon played connected a lucifer astatine the aforesaid clip with each other.

• The USA starting line-up featured nary players from MLS for lone the 2nd clip since the league was formed successful 1996. (The different clip was the lineup to look Jamaica astatine the 2011 Gold Cup.)

• In the archetypal half, the USA gave up zero shots successful immoderate fractional for the archetypal clip successful their World Cup past since 1966.

• The USA got consecutive shutouts astatine the FIFA World Cup for the archetypal clip since its archetypal 2 matches successful the contention successful 1930.

Up next

USA: With the triumph implicit Iran, the U.S. finishes 2nd successful Group B down England and advances to the circular of 16, wherever the Americans volition look the Netherlands connected Dec. 3.

Iran: With their loss, Iran are retired of the World Cup.