The preliminaries are over for the United States, who are moving on to the serious business of the World Cup knockout stage.
That’s their approach after a stunning 3-2 loss to Turkey in Inglewood, Calif., on Thursday in the final and meaningless Group D match.
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The US (2-1-0, 6 points) entered the match having already won the group, knowing they will meet Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32 on July 1 in Santa Clara, California. As a result, US coach Mauricio Pochettino rested nine of his 11 starters from the win over Australia in the previous match.
Even so, there was a sting to the defeat when Kaan Ayhan scored on the last meaningful kick of the match in the eighth minute of second-half stoppage time. Turkey (1-2-0, 3 points) entered the night already eliminated from contention after losses to Australia and Paraguay.
