National Writer: Charles Boehm<\/span>\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n SEATTLE \u2013 Mauricio Pochettino and the US men\u2019s national team<\/a> speak often about how special Christian Pulisic is and how uniquely important he is to their group, both on and off the field.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n So when an injury ruled the superstar attacker out for Friday\u2019s 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> Group D clash vs. Australia, they didn\u2019t even try to replace him.<\/p>\n Pochettino changed his side\u2019s shape instead, shifting from their usual 3-4-2-1 possession setup to a 3-5-2 formation with Ricardo Pepi brought on to partner Folarin Balogun up top.<\/p>\n A move like that is always a gamble, especially in such a tight timeframe. But it paid out big for \u2018Poch\u2019 & Co., as Pepi and Balogun gave the Socceroos’ back line fits, instigating the early own goal that tipped the game state in the Yanks\u2019 direction en route to a 2-0 victory<\/a> that clinches a place in the tournament\u2019s knockout stages as Group D winners.<\/p>\n \u201cThe next man up was ready,\u201d said Pepi postgame.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew that if we were able to just press them, that they would give us a ball, and I feel like that’s what we did today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Telemundo Deportes (@TelemundoSports) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n For a player controversially left off the 2022 World Cup roster despite his substantial contributions to the USMNT\u2019s qualification campaign, it was sweet redemption.<\/p>\n \u201cTo get a start in the World Cup, in front of my family, in front of our fans, it was an amazing feeling,\u201d said the FC Dallas<\/a> product, \u201cand most importantly, we got the win.\u201d<\/p>\n Now 23, Pepi has walked a winding road across Europe since winning the No. 1 spot on MLSsoccer.com\u2019s 22 Under 22 rankings in 2021<\/a> and making a record-breaking, reported $20 million transfer to German Bundesliga side FC Augsburg a few months later.<\/p>\n Friday\u2019s display offered vindication of the El Paso, Texas native\u2019s own resilience after the crushing disappointment of Qatar 2022, and the US coaching staff\u2019s belief despite his injury-plagued season at PSV Eindhoven.<\/p>\n \u201cRicardo, for me, is one of the greatest strikers,\u201d said Pochettino postgame. \u201cHe was suffering in the last year too many injuries and problems that didn’t allow him to develop and to evolve and to be with us a little bit more time. That was a problem, but always we trusted him. Now, working with us, I think he’s getting better and better every day.<\/p>\n \u201cHe can play with another striker, he can play alone, he has an unbelievable capacity to create chances and score goals. Yes, today, him and Folarin made an unbelievable show for the team. We are so happy with both.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \ud83d\udde3\ufe0f\ud83d\udde3\ufe0f Country roads, take me home\u2026 \u2014 U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n With just 25 touches and only one shot, Pepi\u2019s was the type of performance that doesn\u2019t pop on the statistics pages, particularly in terms of his selfless off-ball running and pressing of the Aussie center backs.<\/p>\n Yet the 2021 MLS Young Player of the Year<\/a>‘s contributions were vital just the same.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cWe created some problems for the defense,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt was a very, very intense game, and they were closing a lot of space in the midfield, so it was difficult to get a lot of shots on target, but at the end of the day, we gave them a hard time. So I think it was an important job to do today.<\/p>\n \u201cThey decided to just cover up the spaces in between, and leave a lot of spaces behind, so we were really focused on making those runs behind and getting in behind them, and creating something from that. So I feel like we exploited them well, and we were able to do our thing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \ud83d\udde3\ufe0f U-S-A! \ud83d\udde3\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/RIL73W8xXs<\/a><\/p>\nLong time coming<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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To the place I belong \ud83d\udde3\ufe0f\ud83d\udde3\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/4VIK9kCMuE<\/a><\/p>\nScrappy display<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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