Pulisic returns from injury as USA fall to Türkiye's stoppage-time winner but advance top of Group D

The United States exited the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage with their only defeat — a 3-2 loss to Türkiye at Los Angeles Stadium on Thursday — but Mauricio Pochettino’s side had already secured first place in Group D and a berth in the Round of 32 before kick-off. Kaan Ayhan’s goal on the final kick of the match, in the eighth minute of stoppage time, denied the Americans a perfect group-stage record yet changed almost nothing of substance.

Pochettino named nine new starters for the dead-rubber fixture, eight of them making their first World Cup starts, with the explicit aim of protecting his first-choice squad ahead of the knockout rounds. The rotated lineup came close to winning regardless, only for Türkiye’s late intervention to snatch the result.

The most significant moment of the evening arrived in the 58th minute, when captain Christian Pulisic stepped off the bench. The American talisman had been sidelined since suffering a calf injury in the first half of the tournament opener against Paraguay, and his return was described as sharp and encouraging by those watching on.

“When he’s on the field, anything can happen for the U.S. team,” said analyst Thierry Henry.

Fox Sports soccer analyst Zlatan Ibrahimović was equally unconcerned by the defeat, framing Thursday’s match as a squad-management exercise rather than a genuine test of the team’s World Cup credentials.

“It doesn’t matter because now starts the real deal against Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Ibrahimović said. “This game was more about putting those legs that haven’t played so far and getting them some minutes. The result will not change anything.”

Henry echoed that view, pointing to the absence of injuries or red cards as the true measure of success on the night. “Nobody got injured. Carry on the momentum. That’s the only thing they didn’t do because they didn’t win,” he said.

The USA’s next opponents, Bosnia and Herzegovina, finished third in Group B after drawing with Canada, losing heavily to Switzerland, and beating Qatar 3-1 in their final group game. Pochettino’s side go into the last 32 as group winners, with their most important player fit and available — which, by any measure, was the objective entering Thursday night.