USA beats Australia 2-0 to secure a spot in the World Cup knockout rounds

Seattle (CNN) — The United States is through to the knockout rounds of the 2026 World Cup after a 2-0 win over Australia in a game that got increasingly tense in the second half despite a comfortable American lead.

Following up on their brilliant 4-1 win over Paraguay a week ago would always be a tall task, but the Americans looked strong in the opening 45 minutes against the Aussies – though there remain some blinking warning signs about the Stars and Stripes’ defense.

The win means that the US is guaranteed to go through to the next round of the World Cup, when it becomes a single-elimination tournament. If Paraguay either beats Turkey or earns a draw in the late game on Friday, then the USA could potentially lock up the top spot in Group D.

The US next plays at 10 p.m. ET on Thursday against Turkey at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

The match is just the second time the US has won two World Cup games in the group stage. The last time the Americans pulled off such a feat was in 1930, the inaugural tournament.

The first goal came about through the kind of incisive and free-flowing attack that had been a hallmark of the contest in SoFi Stadium one week ago.

The move started with Falorin Balogun charging into the Aussie penalty area and sending a cross toward Ricardo Pepi, who was playing for the injured Christian Pulisic.

Australian defender Cameron Burgess couldn’t get out of the way and the ball was firmly knocked into the goal for a 1-0 US lead in the 11th minute.

The crowd roared when the ball slammed into the net – a cacophony of sound reverberating around the stadium. The joy wasn’t lost on the American players not starting this match as they ran out of the technical area leaping and jumping for joy while pumping their fists into the air.

The goal marked a World Cup first. The first USA goal in their opening match against Paraguay was also an own goal, marking the first time in the tournament’s nearly 100-year history that a team’s opening goal in its first two games were scored by their opponents.

The early goal eased some US worries given that Pulisic was ruled out of Friday’s matchup with Australia after suffering a calf injury in the World Cup opener against Paraguay last week.

Fans had been rightly questioning if Pulisic would be able to go against the Australians. The captain, whose skill and flair have propelled him to be the face of the team for years, is nursing a left calf injury and spent most of the week training on his own away from his teammates.

Through the first 20-some-odd minutes at a very loud Lumen Field, Pulisic’s absence did not seem to be weighing on the Americans. The threatening US attack from the Paraguay match last week appeared to be back in spades and the USA had multiple other opportunities to get the ball in the back of the net.

However, there are some signs that the USA’s key weakness – its defense – could be a risk in future contests.

In the minutes before the first half hydration break, the Australians were able to win a couple corners and put some pressure on Freese.

Neither team was able to really generate much of an offensive threat after that hydration break. The vibe in the stadium calmed after a collision between Australia’s Paul Okon-Engstler and the USA’s Freeman that resulted in both players tumbling to the grass holding their heads.

The rowdy crowd went quiet following the collision as both players received medical attention. The drums in the far corner kept playing but the vibe rightfully quieted.

With Pulisic absent on the left, the US focused their attacks on the right side of the pitch with Sergiño Dest becoming the focal point of constant attacks with his mazy runs upfield.

The Americans got the ball in the back of the net in the 44th minute after Dest fired a shot from the edge of the box off a corner. The ball was deflected high in the air and Freeman was first to the ball, heading it into the net.

He was ruled offside by the linesman, but the video assistant referee called for a review. The referee said after the review and Freeman was ruled onside, making it 2-0 to the USA.

The last act of a physical first half resulted in Freeman knocking Jordan Bos off the ball in the American’s box, sending the Australian down into the ground. The US goalscorer stood over Bos for a moment with the halftime whistle blaring.

The staredown initiated a little argy-bargy between the pair as both teams exited the field. There is only one way out toward the locker room, and both squads eventually found cooler heads while walking off together.

The game hit a bit of a lull in the early second half as neither team created much of an offensive threat. Balogun had a great chance after getting in behind the Aussie defense, but his shot was blocked by an Aussie defender at the last moment.

The Americans endured a scary moment in the 62nd minute when the Australians broke down the right side through Nestory Irankunda who passed back to Cristian Volpato eventually, eventually firing a shot over the bar. There was an appeal for a penalty after Tyler Adams and an Aussie attacker came together in the box, but those shouts were waved away by the referee.

The Aussies amped up their pressure, having another shot in the 65th minute but Freese made an easy save off the shot by Connor Metcalfe. A few minutes later, the Aussie bench was again up in arms as Irankunda was muscled off the ball by US defender Chris Richards and no foul was called.

Going into the final 15 minutes of the game, it was the Aussies who looked the most threatening as the USA seemed to get some heavy legs in the midday sun in Seattle.

Pochettino made two substitutes with 10 minutes to go in the match to send on some fresh legs as the USA tried to kill off the game. The Australians kept up the pressure and there were some moments of desperate defending on behalf of the Americans, who had not shut an opponent out since doing so to Japan in an exhibition match in September.

The final minutes of the game were marked by several yellow cards handed out by referee Felix Zwayer, who was faced with several big decisions in the second half. The match got increasingly chippy as it wound down, with bodies hitting the floor and big arguments breaking up the flow of play. It was a similar story to what happened the last time these two teams played each other last fall, a US victory.

The final minutes of the game dragged on when Zwayer cramped up and needed a moment to recover.

When the final whistle blew, the Seattle crowd gave one last mighty roar as the Americans triumphantly applauded their fans, who had been in great voice the full 90 minutes.

Pochettino called it a “fantastic game” from his squad and likened the American fan support at Lumen Field to that of Argentina.

“Argentina have amazing fans but I think we are matching Argentina,” Pochettino told the Fox broadcast after the match with screaming fans surrounding him.

“It’s amazing, our fans, I am so happy for them.”

Pochettino added that it was “difficult” to not have Pulisic available for the match as he is considered an “important” player for the USA.

“It was impossible today, for him to play. We hope next game he will be available but we want to win the competition, we need the whole team… Christian (Pulisic) is one of the best players in the world. And hope he can recover as soon as possible and can show it on the pitch and help the team.”

This story has been updated with additional developments.

The-CNN-Wire