Australia beat Türkiye with a perfectly executed game plan in their World Cup opener but will need to find another level to get a result against confident co-hosts the United States, coach Tony Popovic said yesterday.
Australia began their campaign with a superb 2-0 win over Türkiye, sitting deep and springing on the counter to devastating effect to give themselves a great chance of reaching the knockout stages.
Connor Metcalfe of Australia celebrates scoring his team’s second goal against Turkey on June 13.Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images
However, the U.S. is also coming into the match on a high after dismantling Paraguay 4-1, though the fitness of their influential winger Christian Pulisic is a concern.
Popovic said his side should embrace the challenge of facing the U.S. in their backyard, but was under no illusions about the difficulty of their task.
“We know it will be a different type of challenge,†he told reporters. “Playing the host nation here as well is a wonderful challenge, but also a wonderful opportunity for us.â€
