USA, Australia and Mauricio Pochettino
20 June 2026
USA beat Australia 2-0 in Seattle to reach the World Cup knockout stage with one group match to spare. Folarin Balogun forced an own goal, Alex Freeman added a VAR-confirmed header and Christian Pulisic missed out with a calf injury.
Mauricio Pochettino replaced Pulisic with Ricardo Pepi and used a two-striker shape alongside Balogun. The move occupied Australia’s centre-backs, helped the press and gave the hosts enough control to secure back-to-back World Cup wins comfortably.