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CommBank Socceroos' unbeaten run ended by World No.16 USA
The CommBank Socceroos have finally been defeated for the first time under Head Coach Tony Popovic, falling 2-1 to World No.16 USA at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Denver, Colorado.
Jordan Bos opened the scoring in the first half, but a brace for Haji Wright consigned Australia their first defeat in over a year.
The match was an important experience for the Socceroos ahead of the FIFA World Cup 26™ that will hold the team in good stead.
Head Coach Tony Popovic made five changes from the side that defeated Canada earlier in the week. Maty Ryan returned to the starting eleven in goal and wore the captain’s armband in his 101st national team appearance. Jason Geria, Jordy Bos, Nicholas D’Agostino and Martin Boyle were the other players who came into the side.
The game started in a similar fashion to the one in Montreal on Saturday. The United States dominated possession, while Australia’s defence shut down any significant opportunities.
The Socceroos absorbed the pressure and struck first. Sheer determination from Jordy Bos saw him win the ball in the penalty area. He was able to drive through the USA defence - in trademark fashion - and finished well for his second international goal.
In the opening stanza, the United States created more opportunities in front of their home fans. Maty Ryan was forced into a full-stretch save in the 30th minute after a long shot off the boot of Timothy Weah.
The skipper couldn’t keep out their next big chance, however. After winning the ball in the centre of the park, USA used their speed to hit Australia in transition. Haji Wright made no mistake from close range and levelled the match.
The contest became increasingly physical as the half drew to a close. Challenges from both teams drew the ire of both the referee and the home crowd, and the half-time whistle presented an opportunity for both teams to settle down and reset.
The Socceroos had a fantastic opportunity in the opening moments of the half. It was industrious work from Bos, who found Connor Metcalfe in time and space on the edge of the area. Metcalfe's shot was blocked, however, and the follow-up from Aiden O'Neill was off target.
The home side took the lead for the first time in the game soon after that chance. A quickly taken free-kick caught out the Australian defence, finding Haji Wright free in the penalty area. A fantastic first touch took him around Cameron Burgess and he made no mistake with the finish.
Popovic made four changes in the 60th minute. Nestory Irankunda, Patrick Yazbek, Ajdin Hrustic and Mohamed Toure were introduced to spark life into the attacking third.
The substitutes saw a change in the momentum. Australia were the team on the front foot for the majority of the second half as they searched for an equaliser.
Lewis Miller was introduced in place of Jacob Italiano as the Socceroos continued to chase the game.
The United States had a chance to seal the game in the 80th minute, but Ryan came up with a huge save with his legs to keep the deficit at one.
There were concerning scenes late after a collision between Bos and USA's Alex Freeman delayed the game for several minutes. Thankfully, both players were okay to continue.
Mitch Duke was the final substitute for Australia, making his 50th international appearance in place of Jason Geria. The attacking player on for the defender precipitated a change in formation, and indicated one last roll of the dice for Popovic.
Nestory Irankunda almost made something out of nothing late, beating several USA defenders with the ball at his feet. His shot was saved by the goalkeeper.
In the end, despite a much-improved second half, the Socceroos were not able to find the equaliser. While it is a disappointing end to their 12-game unbeaten run, valuable lessons have been learned from a competitive international window.
Match Summary
Australia: 1 (5. Jordan Bos 19')
USA: 2 (19. Haji Wright 34', 52')
Australia: 1. Mat Ryan (GK), 5. Jordan Bos, 6. Martin Boyle (9. Mohamed Toure 60’), 7. Nicholas D’Agostino (14. Nestory Irankunda 60’), 8. Connor Metcalfe (10. Ajdin Hrustic 60’), 13. Aiden O’Neill, 16. Max Balard (19. Patrick Yazbek 60’), 20. Jacob Italiano (3. Lewis Miller 78’), 21. Cameron Burgess, 22. Jason Geria, 23. Alessandro Circati
Unused substitutes: 12. Paul Izzo (GK), 18. Joe Gauci (GK), 2. Milos Degenek, , 4. Kye Rowles, 15. Mitchell Duke, 17. Cameron Devlin, 25. Hayden Matthews
Yellow cards: 22. Jason Geria 26’
Red cards:
USA: 24. Matt Freese (GK), 3. Chris Richards, 6. Cristian Roldan (23. Aidan Morris 76’), 8. Weston McKennie (18. Max Arfsten 77’), 10. Christian Pulisic (7. Diego Luna 31’), 12. Miles Robinson, 15. James Sands (4. Tanner Tessmann 64’), 16. Alex Freeman, 19. Haji Wright (20. Folarin Balogun 64’), 21. Timothy Weah (11. Brendan Aaronson 64’), 22. Mark McKenzie
Unused Substitutes: 1. Matt Turner (GK), 25. Chris Brady (GK), 26. Patrick Schulte (GK), 2. Cameron Carter-Vickers, 9. Patrick Agyemang, , 13. Tim Ream, 17. Malik Tillman
Yellow cards: 3. Chris Richards 56’
Red cards:
Match Preview: USA v CommBank Socceroos | International Friendly
The next stop for the CommBank Socceroos is Dick's Sporting Goods Park, in Denver, Colorado, where they will take on World No.16 USA.
The United States are another one of the host nations of the FIFA World Cup 26™ and are themselves deep in preparations for the tournament.
The CommBank Socceroos will hope to continue their impressive 11-game unbeaten streak under Tony Popovic while continuing to gain experience in North America against a very good side in the USA. It is also an opportunity to gain experience in the high altitude of Colorado.
The Squad
Head Coach Tony Popovic will have his full squad to choose from against USA after their 1-0 victory over Canada. He indicated that there will likely be some rotation after game one, but was coy about revealing the nature of those changes.
One of the biggest decisions for Popovic is in the goalkeeping position. Paul Izzo's performance against Canada helped him stake his claim as the Socceroos number one goalkeeper, but the experienced Maty Ryan is waiting in the wings. If Ryan returns to the starting lineup, he will almost certainly wear the captain's armband ahead of Alessandro Circati.
The Opponent
USA will never have a better opportunity to taste World Cup success than when they participate as joint hosts next year - and Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino knows his team have to prepare as best they can.
Recent competitive fixtures have been anything but smooth for the United States. They finished third in the CONCACAF Nations League in March, after losing to Panama in the semi-final, before losing to Mexico in the final of the Gold Cup in July.
They managed a draw against Ecuador in the first game of this international window, with Folarin Balogun scoring the equaliser in the second half as the game finished 1-1.
It is a tough assignment for Pochettino to deliver World Cup success to the States. However, the former Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, PSG and Chelsea manager certainly has the CV for the task, and a win against Australia would go some way to quelling any lingering doubts about the team.
He has plenty of superstar talent to call on. Christian Pulisic is the biggest name in the squad. Currently plying his trade for AC Milan, the former Borussia Dortmund and Chelsea winger is in the prime of his career and will be the face of the team at the World Cup. He is carrying a slight ankle injury but trained during the week and is expected to be available against Australia.
Other notable players include Juventus' Weston McKennie and experienced defender Tim Ream. Fulham defender Antonee Robinson will not be available for selection due to injury.
Pochettino indicated that there is likely to be rotation from game one.
"It's a good opportunity to keep improving, and showing maybe a different approach to the game, and maybe to change the system, and change the players," he said.
"It's about building something for the World Cup."
Previous Head-to-Head
The last time these teams met was in the lead-up to the FIFA World Cup 2010, when USA defeated Australia 3-1 in Johannesburg.
Then-LA Galaxy player Edson Buddle scored a brace before Herculez Gomez - now a media figure in the United States - added a third. Tim Cahill was the goal scorer for Australia.
The United States were knocked out of that World Cup by Ghana in the Round of 16, while the Socceroos did not advance from their group.
FIFA World Rankings
Australia: 25
United States: 16
Head-To-Head
Played: 3
Won: 1
Draw: 1
Loss: 1
Insights
- The Socceroos are now 12 games undefeated, and are yet to taste defeat under Head Coach Tony Popovic.
- This is the first meeting between the two nations since 2010, when the Socceroos were defeated 3-1.
- Dick's Sporting Goods Park, Colorado is an incredibly successful venue for USA, who have won seven of eight matches played at the stadium.
- Monaco striker Folarin Bologun has scored in consecutive national team appearances, and will be looking to make it three against Australia.
Australia form guide: W-W-W-W-W
United States form guide: D-W-L-L-W
What They Said
Tony Popovic
We've been accustomed to going through the playoffs, so it's quite rare for us to be automatically qualified with a year to prepare. We're looking always for top opposition, challenges that can make it difficult for us. We had that against Canada and we expect the same against the United States. We're really just playing opposition that are tough, that have quality. Here, we are up against a host nation. We know the quality they have. They have a wonderful manager, they have players who are playing at the peak of their powers in the best leagues in the world. We want to challenge ourselves, and that's why we happily took on these two games. We'd like to grow further from the Canada match and try and improve, and try and take that into another difficult encounter.
We want to win every game. It's always easy to say when you don't get the result that the result doesn't matter because it's a friendly - that's a throwaway line that's easy to use - but we want to keep our run going.
Milos Degenek
The boys are very happy, very excited and keen to go tomorrow night. Everyone's pulled up quite well, especially after a good game against Canada in Montreal, a game that we won as well which is very positive. I think we've turned around quite well.
I think it's an exciting game. They're a top ranked country. They've got players who play in big clubs around the world, but sometimes it's not individuals that make that big difference, it's a team game. I think it's going to be a very difficult game for us, especially at home, with their home advantage. They're a very strong team. They haven't had the best run of form recently, but once everything connects with them and once they get used to the style that their boss wants them to play, I think they'll be even better. For us, it will be a very good test.
Alessandro Circati
Every game we're growing. Every game is getting better. We're getting used to playing with each other, which is very important. With the national team, we don't have many games, so the games that we do have, we really need to take it all in and really mould with each other as soon as possible, and to perform to the best that we can. Regarding the game [against Canada], I think we defended really well. We defended well as a whole eleven. Even the boys that came on did their role, which is not easy for them, coming into a game where we had to absorb a lot of pressure.
MATCH DETAILS
United States v CommBank Socceroos
Tuesday, 14 October
Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Colorado
Kick-off: 7.00pm local / 12.00pm AEDT (Wednesday, 15 October)
Broadcast: Paramount+
