INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) 鈥� The United States only wanted to get through its final World Cup group stage match Thursday night without an injury or a red card, while Turkey was playing for a face-saving victory to end a dismal tournament.
Both teams got what they wanted most out of their meaningless meeting before the Americans head on to the knockout stage 鈥� and coach Mauricio Pochettino was annoyed by any suggestion that the Americans’ last-gasp, 3-2 defeat said anything negative about the state of his team.
Kaan Ayhan of the match to send Turkey past the U.S. in the eighth minute of stoppage time for its only win of the .
The result was meaningless to the Americans, who will meet Bosnia-Herzegovina in the Round of 32 on Wednesday. Pochettino sent out nine new starters, including eight who were starting a World Cup match for the first time.
The U.S. tied it early in the second half on a goal by Sebastian Berhalter, and the Americans got within a few seconds of an unbeaten run through the group stage. But in his postgame news conference, Pochettino expressed his annoyance with what he perceived as disappointment in the result.
鈥淔or you not say congratulations that we won the group, that is a little bit sad,鈥� Pochettino told reporters.
鈥淲hat we need to remember is we won first place in this group,鈥� Pochettino added while speaking in Spanish and English. 鈥淲e ended up being No. 1, and we managed all the pressure and the expectations quite well. We had other priorities. We wanted to win. We did want the victory, but there are other things we needed to balance out, and that鈥檚 how I made the decisions. … Making history is winning the World Cup, not just winning the group. It鈥檚 a little bit petty, if you will. You鈥檙e thinking just a little bit too small.鈥�
Auston Trusty scored in the third minute for the Americans, who beat and by a combined 6-1 to book their place in the knockouts.
Pochettino fielded nearly an entirely new lineup for this low-stakes game, notably resting all four key players who picked up yellow cards earlier in the tournament.
entered in the 58th minute, however. The AC Milan midfielder hadn鈥檛 played since the first half of the Americans鈥� opener due to a calf injury, and he was involved in a couple of early scoring chances before getting beaten on the wing on Turkey鈥檚 winning goal.
鈥淲e could have done better on some defensive plays, but it happens,鈥� said Brenden Aaronson, one of nine new starters chosen by Pochettino for the group finale.
鈥淵ou make (nine) changes, and the team might not be used to as the guys that have been playing,” Aaronson added. “It showed the hustle, the aggressiveness of the team. I think it鈥檚 a positive, because Turkey is a top team. They might have not performed their best throughout this tournament, but their quality is on the pitch and you can see it.鈥�
Berhalter said he doesn鈥檛 believe the Americans lost any momentum from this close defeat.
鈥淵ou saw the second half, how we came out,鈥� said Berhalter, who tied it in the 49th minute by running on to a loose ball about 20 yards out for a vicious strike. 鈥淚 think we deserved more out of that game. We slipped in the last second of the game. … We gave everything we had, and we鈥檒l be ready for the knockouts. The guys did well. We fought. Unfortunate not to get a result, but we鈥檒l be ready for sure.鈥�
Arda G眉ler and Orkun K枚k莽眉 scored in the first half of a resilient performance by Turkey, which had already been eliminated after losing its first two matches despite largely dominating both statistically.
Turkey improbably won in the eighth minute of stoppage time when Can Uzun got the ball in space on the back post and pushed it past sprawling goalkeeper Matt Turner to Ayhan, who slid to knock it home.
鈥淚鈥檓 super-happy with how my players played tonight,鈥� Turkey coach Vincenzo Montella said through an interpreter. 鈥淭hey showcased all of their skills, all of their abilities, all of their character. Playing the way they played tonight in an away match, against a very loud crowd, if they weren鈥檛 as strong as they are, they wouldn鈥檛 have made it tonight.
“I鈥檓 really happy for the Turkish people. I can say that we can go back home with our chin up.鈥�
Indeed, the game鈥檚 meaninglessness didn鈥檛 matter to the raucous sellout crowd that packed SoFi Stadium. The American team鈥檚 fan base has been energized by its strong start to this home World Cup — and this Los Angeles-area crowd was still chanting and standing when Berhalter airmailed a long corner to Trusty, who made the stadium shake when he banged it home inside the back post.
Trusty鈥檚 goal was the Americans鈥� seventh of the tournament, tying their scoring record for any World Cup before knockout play even begins. It was also the 173rd goal of this tournament, breaking the record for the most combined goals scored in a World Cup set in Qatar four years ago 鈥� and doing it in four fewer matches.
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