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USMNT vs. Turkiye: Key takeaways from a rare World Cup dead rubber

Turkey's Kaan Ayhan celebrates scoring their third goal with teammates. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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USMNT vs. Turkiye: Key takeaways from a rare World Cup dead rubber

By Alyssa Clang | Last updated Jun 26, 2026 12:47 AM ET

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INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The U. S. Men's National Team capped off its stellar group stage at the 2026 FIFA World Cup by losing 3-2 to Turkiye in front of a sold-out crowd in Inglewood, California. Goals from Auston Trusty and Sebastian Berhalter kept the team competitive for much of the match, but a last-gasp strike from Turkiye's Kaan Ayhan sealed the match in favor of the Turks.

The result did not matter — the USMNT entered the game having won the group already — but the last-second nature of the loss did take some of the wind out of the team's sails.

Here are the key takeaways from the USMNT's final group-stage fixture:

Mauricio Pochettino was right: There's no such thing as a depth player

The story has been the same at every modern World Cup: The USMNT is capable of fielding a competitive eleven but not a competitive 26. The starting players can go toe-to-toe with the world's best, but the bench players can't quite do the same. When we talk about up-leveling the USMNT, we're mostly talking about up-leveling those players on the fringe of the roster.

This game — a dead-rubber group-stage fixture with little on the line — offered the USMNT a rare chance to test how far those depth players have come. Coach Mauricio Pochettino made nine changes from his starting lineup against Australia and let his reserves run wild against a motivated Turkiye side playing for pride. They certainly didn't look perfect, but they looked far more competitive than USMNT reserves had in the past, and that proved Pochettino's favorite point: There's really no such thing as a reserve in a World Cup roster. Making a deep tournament run requires lights-out performances from everyone.

Special plaudits are in order for defender Auston Trusty, whose third-minute goal led to a delirious bench-clearing celebration, and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, who went from attending the World Cup as a fan to scoring a World Cup banger in four years flat. Both made strong cases for their inclusion in future starting elevens.

@foxsports A moment Auston Trusty will remember forever #usmnt #usa #fifaworldcup ♬ original sound - FOX Sports

Chris Richards has never looked more valuable

If you were wondering how important Chris Richards is to this USMNT squad, the answer is very. The 6-foot-3 central defender has been a rock for the team at the World Cup, and his absence in this match was keenly felt. Both of Turkiye's first-half goals came from shoddy inside-the-box defending: Mark McKenzie failed to pick up Arda Guler on the first, and Miles Robinson and Auston Trusty fumbled Orkun Kokcu on the second. Both were communication errors that Richards would've resolved.

Richards's value add goes beyond man-to-man defending, though. He's one of the cleanest passers at this World Cup, and many of his slickest moves come from getting the ball out of his own penalty box and out to the flanks. Passes like those keep the USMNT on the front foot and prevent it from getting bogged down inside its own penalty area. McKenzie and Robinson simply couldn't replicate them, and that left the team trapped in its own half for long stretches of the match.

Christian Pulisic might be the face of this team, but Richards is clearly the backbone. The USMNT levels up considerably when he's on the field.

The USMNT is starting to look like box-office entertainment...literally

This was the USMNT's second World Cup game in Los Angeles, and the VIP crowd looked markedly different here than it did in the team's California debut. Back then, Rob Lowe and Paris Hilton were the only celebrities visible in the crowd; Thursday night, movie stars like Ed Norton, Brad Pitt, Ashton Kutcher, Owen Wilson and Jessica Alba were all in attendance too.

Did this gaggle of celebrity support change the result? No, of course not. But the incredible A-list turnout at this match does show just how much the USMNT has resonated with the American public over the course of its World Cup journey. Two weeks ago, this team was a niche oddity; now, it's the hottest ticket in sports.

The USMNT will continue its World Cup run on Wednesday, July 1, when it will face Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32 in Santa Clara, California.

Alyssa Clang

Alyssa is a Boston-born Californian with a passion for global sport. She can yell about misplaced soccer passes in five languages and rattle off the turns of Silverstone in her sleep. You can find her dormant Twitter account at @alyssaclang, but honestly, you’re probably better off finding her here

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