USMNT chase perfect group stage as Pochettino rotates vs. Turkey

A perfect finish in reach

Your team has already won Group D. Paraguay beaten. Australia beaten. Tomorrow it is Turkey, already eliminated, and the USMNT can close the group stage with three wins from three (1) (4).

Pochettino ready to rotate

Top spot is locked, so the manager will shuffle the lineup. Mauricio Pochettino said he plans heavy rotation for the Turkey match (1). The message is clear: rest legs, protect key players, give the squad depth a World Cup run-out before the knockouts.

Pulisic back and ready

Christian Pulisic missed the Australia win with a calf issue. He has been training and says he is fit. "I've been working every single day," Pulisic said (3). Whether Pochettino starts him or keeps him wrapped for the round of 16 remains the only real question heading into Friday.

Pochettino: 'Worse than we believed'

Six months ago the program was in a darker place than anyone let on. Pochettino admitted he misjudged the situation when he arrived and that things were "worse than we believed" (2). Two group-stage wins and a knockout berth later, the mood around the squad is the opposite of that early assessment.

Fan-reaktioner

The Freeman household is having a World Cup. As Alex Freeman earns minutes for the USMNT, his father Antonio Freeman, the former Green Bay Packers wide receiver, has become the emotional center of a joyful thread on r/soccer. Fans are eating up every clip of the Super Bowl hero losing his mind watching his son on the biggest stage. Read the thread