No Pulisic, no problem: how the USA learned to win without their star player | Jeff Rueter
Mauricio Pochettino had to do without his best player against Australia. But Ricardo Pepi helped the Americans build attacks in different ways
Once it was clear that Christian Pulisic’s calf could keep him out of Friday’s match against Australia, Mauricio Pochettino had a lot of options to consider. There is no like-for-like alternative to Pulisic, still the United States’ most important player.
Australia entered this game with a point to prove, wanting to build off of their opening win over Turkey with a statement result against the tournament co-hosts. As was the case when the teams met for a friendly in October, the Socceroos were set up to operate in a low defensive block, with five along the backline and a swarming, zonal marking scheme in front of them. That system can be quite effective against a team who play with just one striker, as the US have for most of the 21st century.
When the lineups dropped, there was just one change from the US side who bulldozed Paraguay 4-1. There was no Pulisic. In his stead was Ricardo Pepi, who would play alongside his fellow center-forward Folarin Balogun. It seemed like a risk for the US to forego their usual numbers in midfield, but it proved to be a gambit rather than a gamble as the US strolled to a 2-0 half-time lead they maintained until the final whistle.
“I feel like it opens up some spaces, of course, but you know it’s always good to be able to have two strikers,” Pepi said after his first World Cup start. “If the defenders are marking me, then the other [striker] is always free. So it’s a good thing that we were able to play like this, and it just shows what the team has.”
What the team have is chemistry, after years playing alongside each other at youth and senior levels. Coupled with a few weeks to train together, the US look far better rehearsed with their movement patterns, and it’s putting even the sturdiest of opponents’ low-blocks in two minds.
The first time the US truly tested the Socceroos on Friday they scored. It was the second straight match in which they had forced their opponents into an early own-goal.
In the 11th minute, after the US had already tested Australia from each side, Antonee Robinson collected a pass from Tim Ream as he has countless times during his career. When Pochettino’s US play with two attacking midfielders, as they do when Pulisic is on the field, Robinson’s instinct has been to look for either his holding or attacking midfielder to get the ball back into the half-space.
Against Paraguay, sequences like these kept the South Americans on their toes and allowed the US to put together dizzying patterns of play. Adding a second striker makes the more direct route even more advisable as any downhill sprint can be supplemented with adequate support.
Robinson gave Australia a test with a ball up the line, having already drawn wing-back Jacob Italiano too far upfield to nullify the threat. Balogun recognized the space and made a run to create an opportunity.
The US found themselves with a similar sequence in their recent friendly against Senegal. In that match, Sergiño Dest popped up to offer Pulisic a crossing option after Pepi had dropped deep to help with build-up. On Friday, with all three Australian center-backs still stationed at the edge of their defensive third, this ball left the US with an advantage of pace as the midfielders and wing-backs scrambled to support.
“I mean, credit to [Balogun],” Robinson said after the match. “I could see that he was looking to run the space in behind, so I just kind of played it down the channel for him, and then he’s done a lot of work to get towards the goal and create a chance.”
Despite seldom operating as a winger in his career to date, Balogun attacked the space presented to him, confident that he could stay a step ahead of Alessandro Circati.
Pepi kept doing center-forward stuff as the sequence progressed and made a run up the heart of the pitch. Although Balogun had scored a brace against Paraguay, Australia would have been reckless to ignore Pepi, who bagged 16 goals in 26 league games for PSV this past season. Balogun bypassed Circati and was running out of room. But he had ideal options available to him in the heart of the box.
Cameron Burgess had done just enough to get between Balogun and his teammates and desperately tried to prod the ball out for a corner kick. But under pressure, Burgess instead put the ball past his own keeper to reward Balogun’s industry.
The gambit had paid off quickly. Australia’s defense were in two minds from the opening whistle, with their center-backs occupied and unable to lock down on Balogun as intended.
“I want to be dangerous,” Balogun said after the win. “I want to create opportunities, and it might not always be myself that scores, but if I can force an error that gives us the lead, then for me it’s like a goal as well.”
Pepi’s presence in the box also helped on the second goal. As Robinson prepared to take a free-kick at the end of the first half, Australia had to contend with the threat of three US center-backs and two strikers, including Pepi – prime targets for deliveries like these. Dest loitered around the edge of the area, and Australia’s panicked defenders ran to mark him as he received Robinson’s free-kick. That left the Socceroos’ defensive block unsettled, meaning Alex Freeman was open when Dest’s shot took a deflection and the ball headed towards the Villarreal defender.
From there, the second half was far easier for the US to control. Australia had committed to being difficult to break down in the hope of nicking a goal or two, as they had against Turkey. The Socceroos made three substitutions at half-time but the changes did little to boost their attacking threat. Pepi kept doing what he was asked to do as he occupied defenders and found space. That, coupled with his pressing, made him a valuable alternative to Pulisic, despite having a very disparate job description.
For Pepi, who was harshly left off the last World Cup roster, it was a memorable start that should earn him more playing time moving forward. No matter who is in the lineup, this group is confident they can adapt on the fly and keep the initiative.
“Whether it’s coming to feet, running off the ball, we’re all trying to create options for each other,” Robinson said. “It feels fluid. Everyone feels like they’re linking up really well, and hopefully we keep going with it.”
