INGLEWOOD (CNS) – The United States will try to complete World Cup group stage play undefeated and untied for the first time since the inaugural 1930 tournament when it faces winless Turkey Thursday evening at SoFi Stadium.
The Americans assured themselves of finishing first in Group D with a 2-0 victory over Australia Friday, improving to 2-0-0.
U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said star forward Christian Pulisic would be available after missing the Australia match because of a calf injury sustained in the first half of the Americans’ tournament-opening 4-1 victory over Paraguay June 12.
However, in his final meeting with journalists before Thursday’s match, Pochettino said he had not has decided with the medical team whether Pulisic would start or enter as a substitute.
While Thursday’s march will have no bearing on who the U.S. will face when it begins play in the knockout stage Wednesday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Pochettino and several players expressed the importance of winning Thursday.
“We have achieved what we wanted first of all by qualifying for the next stage but now it is important to compete in the best way because we want to win Friday, Pochettino said Wednesday at a news conference at SoFi Stadium.
“We have qualified — but we want to win. We want to go to the next stage with three victories.”
Following Wednesday’s training session at Great Park Sports Complex in Irvine Pulisic said, “When you win your last game, you go into the next one with a little bit extra, a good feeling. That winning mentality feeling sticks with you. You want it for sure going into the knockout rounds.
“We’ll definitely feel better with a win. That’s why we’re going to push for it. It’s an amazing opportunity. Like you said, we don’t necessarily need a win, but it’s a World Cup game, and we all want to give our best and do well.”
Pochettino said four starters from the first two matches are unlikely to play — defenders Chris Richards, Antonee Robinson, midfielder Tyler Adams and striker Folarin Balogun — because they each received a yellow card. A second yellow card would mean the player would be suspended for the Round of 32 match.
Midfielder Cristian Roldan is questionable with what Pochettino described as a minor muscle strain. His availability will be determined Thursday, Pochettino said.
The 31-year-old alumnus of El Rancho High School in Pico Rivera did not play in either of the first two matches.
Thursday’s match will be the last in the tournament for Turkey, which was mathematically eliminated from advancing to the knockout stage following a 1-0 loss to Paraguay Friday. The Crescent Stars began the tournament with a 2-0 loss to Australia June 13.
“We had high expectations, but we couldn’t make it this time,” Turkish striker Kenan Yildiz said Wednesday. “All of our country was supporting us and thought we’d come very far.
“I want to say sorry to the fans who came here to watch our matches and support us. We’ll give our best for future tournaments to make you proud again. Friday, we want to show us and still go out in a good way.”
Yildiz is a teammate of American midfielder Weston McKennie with the Italian Serie A club Juventus.
Turkey is making its third appearance in the World Cup and first since 2002 when it finished third. It was ninth in a 16-team field in 1954.
The U.S. was 2-0-0 in the group stage in 1930 with 3-0 victories over Belgium and Paraguay.
The Americans are 2-2-1 against Turkey, including a 2-1 loss June 7, 2025 in an exhibition June 7, 2025, in East Hartford, Connecticut in their most recent meeting
The Opta supercomputer gives the United States a 47.7% chance of wining based on 10,000 pre-match simulations, Turkey a 29.3% chance while a tie occurs in 23% of the simulations.
The 7 p.m. match will be televised in English by Fox and in Spanish by Telemundo.
Free watch parties will be held at Ivy Station in Culver City, the Ovation Hollywood shopping center, Hammer Museum in Westwood, George Lane Park in Quartz Hill, the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica and West Hollywood Park,
Watch parties will also be held at MacArthur Park in the Westlake district, Lanark Recreation Center in Canoga Park and Northridge Recreation Center as part of the Kick It In the Park program organized by various city of Los Angeles departments that also include youth soccer clinics, neighborhood programming and community resources.
Attendance is limited to 1,000 people at a time. Alcohol sale, possession and consumption is not permitted. Attendees are advised by organizers to bring blankets, chairs, snacks and reusable water bottles.
Each of Thursday’s other five games will also be shown — Curacao- Ivory Coas6 and Ecuador-Germany at 1 p.m.; Japan-Sweden and Tunisia-Netherlands at 4 p.m. and Paraguay-Australia at 7 p.m.
More information is available at kickit.lacity.gov.
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