Everything you need to know about the USA vs Türkiye match: Story, Predicted Lineups, Predictions
The American men's soccer team will face Türkiye in the final match of the 2026 World Cup group stage, determined to win their third consecutive victory even though they may have to rest some key players.
The US team has officially booked their place in the round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup and has also finished top of Group D. Therefore, their final match against Türkiye at Los Angeles Stadium on Thursday could be considered to be of little significance. However, this is not entirely true for the US team, as they are still determined to win their third consecutive World Cup.
Main story: Who will play?
Coach Mauricio Pochettino confirmed on Wednesday that the four American players who received yellow cards in the previous two wins will not be in the starting lineup against Türkiye, who were eliminated. Many other players, such as Sergiño Dest, Chris Richards, Antonee "Jedi" Robinson and 38-year-old captain Tim Ream, will also be rested. The big question remaining is whether star man Christian Pulisic will be in the first team. Although Pulisic has confirmed he can play after recovering from a calf injury, he admitted that he is unlikely to play the full 90 minutes. It is predicted that the AC Milan player will come on as a substitute in the second half.
Notable player: Ricardo Pepi
This time, I choose striker Ricardo Pepi. He made his first appearance at the World Cup last week against Australia when Christian Pulisic did not play due to injury. This week, I predict he will continue to play when Folarin Balogun has a yellow card. Coach Pochettino said he will rest four players with yellow cards: Balogun, Chris Richards, Antonee "Jedi" Robinson and Tyler Adams. This is a big opportunity for Pepi, who played 74 minutes and contributed to an own goal in the match against Australia. In this match, he can be the leader in attack and can score his first goal at the World Cup.
Predict America's starting lineup
- Goalkeeper: Matt Freese
- Left back: Max Arfsten
- Center back: Auston Trusty
- Center back: Mark McKenzie
- Center back: Miles Robinson
- Right back: Joe Scally
- Central midfielder: Weston McKennie
- Central midfielder: Sebastian Berhatler
- Attacking midfielder: Brenden Aaronson
- Striker: Tim Weah
- Striker: Ricardo Pepi
With the US team winning the group, coach Mauricio Pochettino will make many changes to the squad. While Folarin Balogun, Tyler Adams, Chris Richards and Antonee "Jedi" Robinson are on yellow cards, they cannot risk suspension. Christian Pulisic is almost ready to play, but if he is able to play, it will likely be from the bench. This is also a good opportunity to rest for Tim Ream, who is 38 years old. Once this stage is reached, I think Pochettino will rest many key players.
What to expect from Türkiye
Türkiye may be the unluckiest team at the World Cup and will feel disadvantaged going into this match. Among the teams at the bottom of the table, especially those that have been eliminated, Türkiye may be the team with the most talent. This team had 62 shots in the first two matches without scoring any goals. In their opening match against Australia, Türkiye faced a team that defended very well and fell behind by one goal early. After that, Australia was able to sit deep and defend very solidly. Next, against Paraguay, they also fell behind early on and despite playing with 10 men for 50 minutes, they still couldn't score. When looking at Türkiye's xG (expected goals) and total shots, you'd be surprised to see them lose both matches without a point. But in reality, this team will return home after this match regardless of the result. Being behind early was especially difficult for Türkiye. This created a strange match as Türkiye controlled the match, initially feeling confident that a goal would come. But as the match dragged on, they felt more and more frustrated.
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