England wary of ‘full-throttle’ U.S.
Americans are hoping to be latest underdog to take down one of the tournament favorites
DOHA, Qatar — England scored six goals in its opening World Cup game against Iran, but it was the two it conceded that concern coach Gareth Southgate and provide hope for the United States.
“By the end we looked sloppy,” Southgate said of the 6-2 win over Iran on Monday. He also warned that the U.S. would be coming “full throttle” in Friday’s Group B match.
The tournament already has produced some shocking results, including Saudi Arabia’s win over Argentina and Japan’s upset of Germany.
A win for the U.S. over England would not be on the scale of Saudi Arabia’s win — but Gregg Berhalter’s team is undoubtedly the underdog against one of the tournament favorites.
The two goals conceded against Iran gave Southgate something to focus on in an otherwise encouraging performance.
His message to the players has been clear: They will need to be better against the U.S. team that tied Wales 1-1 in its opening group game.
“They’re a top nation with a lot of top players who have played in the Premier League and who we’ve come up against,” said England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford. “But it’s about us as a squad being 100 percent. It’s about us taking the
result from Iran and going into the U.S. game positive.”
One of those Premier League players is Chelsea winger Christian Pulisic, a point of focus for England's defense.
“He's good with both feet, very clinical,” Pickford said. “We've got to be wary of him.”
A win for England would see it qualify for the round of the 16 with a game still to play — but the fate of Lionel Messi and Argentina is proof nothing can be taken for granted.
“It's what World Cup football is all about,” said Pickford. “There are going to be surprises.”
U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner is predicting more of them at the World Cup.
“You see that the world of football is levelling out in a lot of ways,” he said. “Teams have game plans. Teams have been investing in their youth academies over a number of years.”
“I think the message is when you have one team that's bought into the same message, you can beat anyone on any given day.”
The U.S. famously beat England 1-0 in the 1950 World Cup and the teams tied 1-1 in 2010. If the U.S. is to produce the latest surprise of this year's tournament, it will have to contain an England attack that was ruthless in the match against Iran, which featured two goals by Bukayo Saka.
“I think it's pretty clear he's one of the young stars of world football,” said his Arsenal teammate Turner. “He's a top, top player and you don't need me to tell anybody on our team how much of a threat that he poses in the game. He's scoring goals in a variety of ways. He's really developed,
matured.”
England coach Garrett Southgate noted history is in favor of the United States. The Americans beat England 1-0 at the 1950 World Cup and the teams played to a 1-1 draw in 2010.
“Have we ever beaten the States in a major tournament?” Southgate asked during his prematch news conference. “No, I didn't think so. So tomorrow we have to try to make history.”
Southgate also poked fun at England's reputation for building up expectations as it searches for its first World Cup title since its only tournament win in 1966.
“We are good at that,” Southgate said. “We are
good at talking highly of ourselves as a nation on the basis of very little evidence. So what we've got to do is perform on the field. We know we will play a highly motivated team.”
The England team should get a boost from having striker Harry Kane available for the Group B match. Kane, who was the leading scorer at the 2018 World Cup, didn't score in the team's opening 6-2 rout of Iran but he did injure his left ankle.
“Harry's good,” Southgate said. “It would be a brave decision to leave him out of the starting (lineup).”
England should also have Harry Maguire back after the defender left the
opening match with blurred vision.
Maguire, whose poor form with Manchester United led to him being dropped by Ten Hag, has been a key figure in England's success at its last two tournaments — reaching the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup and the final of last year's European Championship, which it lost in a penalty shootout against Italy.
“Obviously being picked for your country is a huge privilege,” said Maguire, who is set to make his 50th appearance for the national team. “It's the pinnacle of anybody's footballing career to play at major tournaments for your country, World Cups especially.”