CHICAGO (AP) — Anthony Robinson hit a perfect ball with his left foot, and the ball barreled into the corner of the goal. Surrounded by an enthusiastic sellout crowd at Soldier Field, the defender celebrated with cartwheels and backflips.
Not a bad way to get into it world cup.
Robinsons stunning goal It was the biggest highlight for the United States. 2-1 loss Off to Germany on Saturday. It was the ninth straight loss for the U.S. against a European opponent since 2022, but the U.S. national team was encouraged by its performance in the final World Cup preparations.
Forward Christian Pulisic said: “We were playing a really good team, but at times I thought we were dangerous.” “We had good possession and played good defense for a good portion of it. And yeah, I think we have a good feel, to be honest.”
Members of the 1994 U.S. team were recognized on the field before the game.
Manager Mauricio Pochettino started with numbers similar to those in the World Cup squad: Matt Freese in goal, Sergiño Dest at right-back, Alex Freeman, Miles Robinson and Tim Ream in central defence, Anthony Robinson at left-back, Tyler Adams and Malik Tillman in defensive midfield, Pulisic and Weston McKennie in forward midfield, and Folarin Balogun up front.
The U.S. played without its top defender. Chris Richardshas been out of action since May 17th when he tore a ligament in his left ankle. Miles Robinson could be replaced by Richards, Mark McKenzie or Auston Trusty in Friday’s World Cup opener against Paraguay.
In the final test before the tournament, the United States created some promising scoring opportunities, led by Pulisic and Balogun. The United States, ranked 16th in the rankings, controlled the end of the first half and finished with 10 corner kicks, while Germany, ranked 10th in the rankings, only took two.
But the United States also made some costly mistakes, which Pochettino hopes to clean up in his final preparations for the World Cup.
Since Pochettino took over as coach in October 2024, the United States has 14 wins, 10 losses, and two draws.
“We are competing. We were unlucky. I think it was an even game,” Pochettino said. “If you look at the stats, you’ll see similar stats in some of our stats. I’m very happy with the effort and how the team is doing.”
The Americans got off to a tough start when Adams was called for tripping Felix Nmeka with Germany’s back to goal just 43 seconds into the game. The resulting free-kick saw Riem converted by Nico Schlotterbach, and a wide-open Kai Havertz beat Myles Robinson for an easy header in the second minute.
Germany’s winning goal came in the 57th minute when Leroy Sane received a short pass from Havertz and beat Freeze at the far post, delaying Miles Robinson’s start.
Anthony Robinson said, “It’s disappointing to lose, but there are many things to look forward to.” “Had we conceded early, we could have easily collapsed and had a very bad day going into the tournament. But we fought back and played really good football at times and looked good and competitive.”
For the Americans, nothing could have been better than Anthony Robinson’s fifth international goal in the 37th minute. Jonathan Tarr tried to head Pulisic’s corner kick clear, but it went just outside the box, and Robinson fired a perfect volley past Germany goalkeeper Oliver Baumann.
“Terrible. I mean, it was a terrible goal,” Pulisic said with a smile.
Robinson, 28, has given himself the nickname “. jedi ” He said that when he was still a child, he had never scored a goal like that in a competitive match.
It reminded me of Benny Feilhaber’s tying goal between the United States and Mexico in the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup final at Soldier Field.
“Being in the World Cup, it means a lot to me to have scored a goal like this and to have a little bit of freedom within myself to be able to take another shot if I’m in that position,” Robinson said.
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
