With a 1-0 victory over Iran and a spot in the World Cup's knockout rounds secured, Christian Pulisic has once again emerged as the USA's greatest player.
Both teams were aware that qualification was on the line, therefore the game was tense. However, the USMNT took the lead when Pulisic headed in a feed from Sergino Dest. Iran lacked ambition and made few attempts to enter the USA zone in the first half.
Iran pressed in the second half, but the USA's defense stayed firm, allowing them to score three points while also shocking their opponents.In this article, Mirror Football discusses the key talking points from the USA's final group game before they take on the Netherlands in the round of 16.
Berhalter's wager succeeds
Giovani Reyna and Brenden Aaronson have both been left out of the starting lineup once more, shocking USMNT supporters, but head coach Gregg Berhalter decided to go with the same starting lineup from their first game. Walker Zimmerman was the lone player left out of Berhalter's starting lineup for the 1-1 tie with Wales.
With Pulisic's goal coming just 90 seconds after Timothy Weah's strike in the first game, they continued to play like they had against the Welsh in the first half. They dominated the first 45 minutes against Wales and swarmed Iran as well; Iran didn't receive a kick until much later.
Aaronson did enter the game for the second half, but not before Pulisic sustained an injury. It took a lot of guts for Berhalter to refuse requests from other parties to introduce the two stars at the start of the game, but his confidence has paid off as USA advanced from the group.
Pulisic's message to Chelsea
Even though Pulisic's evening came to a disappointing conclusion as he hobbled into the locker room at halftime, he still managed to send a message to his domestic employers. At a pivotal moment, Pulisic broke the USMNT's scoreless tie, and he has dominated the tournament thus far.
Before scoring his long-awaited World Cup goal in the third match, he provided an assist for Timothy Weah's goal in the first game and hit the crossbar against England in the second. Although Pulisic has made Chelsea aware of another message, USA supporters are well aware that he is their major player.
youth fearlessness
Only goalkeeper Matt Turner and defender Tim Ream deviated from the norm as the USMNT selected one of the youngest teams in recent World Cup history. Yunus Musah, 20, continued to dominate in midfield, and Weah, 22, continued to shine.
Dest establishes his value
Sergino Dest may seem to have been around forever, but the right-back is only only 22. He has already represented his nation at the World Cup and played for Ajax, Barcelona, and AC Milan.
He was purchased by Barcelona for Ł20 million after having a breakthrough season at Ajax, and as part of his five-year contract, Barcelona added a Ł345 million buyout clause. But Milan already has the option to purchase him for the price Barcelona paid for him, and they may be thinking about doing so right now.