David Hytner was at Al Bayt Stadium, and his report is in. Jacob Steinberg was there too, and his ratings follow. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night!
Updated
We have people with cameras. They’ve been out and about, and have found some perky Americans in a fan zone. Here they are …
… and the team themselves are pretty bullish too, Christian Pulisic telling Fox Sports: “It’s all about winning the game, so we’ve got to come out very aggressive ... to get to the next round. I’m very confident we can do it.”
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Gareth Southgate speaks to the station formerly known as Tyne Tees. “It was exactly the sort of game I thought it would be. A good opponent who were very athletic. I knew it would be difficult after such a high to replicate that type of performance, so I’m really pleased how the players applied themselves. Some of the quality in the final third could have been a little bit better, but we’ve shown great resilience to defend against opponents who kept asking questions. We controlled the game well from the back, but were just not able to open up with that clear-cut chance. We didn’t quite have the same zip, but that’s going to happen. This is tournament football, we’re not going to roll through a tournament, and sweep through everybody without having nights like that, when you’ve got to show different qualities to get the result. It will be a totally different game against Wales. Silver medal today was a point. It puts us in a really strong position in terms of qualification. If we can win our last game, we win the group.”
Harry Maguire also talks to the station formerly known as LWT. “We wasn’t at our best, but it’s a point and it puts us in a strong position in our group. We know they are a good team, they play at a big tempo and we had to work hard. They had a couple of chances, but if we were more clinical with ours we’d have probably won the game. We’ll take the positive parts but work on the parts we need to improve on. World Cup games are tough. They’re all top teams at this World Cup. We wasn’t ruthless enough in the final third, but we have good forwards and I’m sure the next game we’ll be all right. We dug in and got the clean sheet. We stay in control of the group. Of course we wanted to win tonight and see the job through, but we’re looking forward to the game against Wales now.”
Harry Kane speaks to ITV. “It wasn’t our best performance for sure. We had some good spells, created some good positions, but we didn’t quite have the final product today. A great clean sheet that puts us in a great position in the group. We weren’t clinical. The complete contrast against Iran, we took our chances really well. Today we had two or three good opportunities but didn’t put them away. But overall we were playing a tough team, and we move on. At times we dealt with their press well. They’re a good side, and you have to respect them. A draw ain’t the end of the world, and we look forward to the next one. We know we can play better. It’s a draw at a World Cup. No game is easy. People thought after our first performance we would landslide every team, but that’s not the case. It leaves us in a really good position.”
Quite a few boos greeted that full-time whistle. Quite a few England fans still not happy with Gareth Southgate. Tonight’s performance was as limp as Monday’s showing against Iran was effervescent. The USMNT were the better side, creating more chances, creating better chances, and hitting the bar. A fair bit of the feelgood factor surrounding England will have dissipated tonight. But some good news for Southgate and his side: this result means England are as good as through to the knockouts. They’ll only miss out if Wales whack them by four goals next Tuesday. All four teams in Group B can still qualify.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| 2 | Iran | 2 | -2 | 3 |
| 3 | USA | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Wales | 2 | -2 | 1 |
FULL TIME: England 0-0 USA
Pulisic takes the point, rolling the free kick down the flank towards the corner flag, Reyna waiting for the whistle. And then that whistle blows. England still haven’t beaten the USA at a World Cup!
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90 min +4: Maybe one last chance for the US to snatch it! Maguire skittles Reyna to the ground, and Pulisic will swing one in from the right flank.
90 min +3: Shaw curls a stunning free kick into the mixer. Kane wins a header six yards out, only to send it off the top of his noggin and wide left. Huge chance to snatch what would have been, quite frankly, an undeserved win.
90 min +2: Another Grealish run, another free kick, drawn this time from Musah. A free kick in a dangerous position out on the left. Shaw to loop into a crowded box.
90 min +1: Maguire meets the corner, heading down. The ball softly bounces up into Turner’s arms.
90 min: Henderson wins a free kick out on the right. It’s taken quickly, Henderson’s cross forcing Robinson to head out for a corner. It’ll be taken during the first of four added minutes.
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88 min: Pulisic, on the edge of the England box, finds Moore in the area to the right. A first-time ball through the six-yard box would have England in all sorts of trouble, but Moore hesitates, then cuts back to nobody in particular. England breathe again.
87 min: A little bit of space for Rashford, just to the left of the US D. He looks to curl one into the top right. No whip, no pace, and it’s an easy claim for Turner.
86 min: England faff about in their own half for a while. The US let them get on with it. The clock ticks on.
85 min: The ball falls in the general environs of Maguire … but Ream reads the danger and gets in the way to blooter clear.
84 min: Grealish does what Grealish does, drawing a foul from the opposition out on the left wing. Everyone lines up on the edge of the American box. Shaw to take.
83 min: Gregg Berhalter, having listened to Tracy Moir, sends on Reyna. He replaces Weah, and is one of two changes, Wright making way for Sargent.
81 min: Henderson flings a garryowen into the US box. A bit early for this sort of desperation, but there it is. Turner claims under pressure from Kane. “USA fans are wondering why Reyna isn’t on yet to bring some pace,” writes Tracy Mohr. “Our coach is not admired for his substitution nous.”
79 min 49 sec: After coming on against Iran last Monday, Rashford had scored by now.
79 min: Rashford comes on for Saka.
78 min: Moore and Aaronson come on for McKennnie and a not particularly chuffed Dest. “Here is Australia SBS TV have the World Cup and Martin Tyler as the commentator,” begins Craig Fillingham. “He is on his own, so no one can help fill this game’s void. In the first half, he actually spelt the Antonee of Antonee Robinson as he explained it was such a different way of spelling Anthony. Not criticising Tyler, but it is a reflection on the entertainment of the game.”
76 min: England have certainly stemmed the flow of all those US attacks. They’re not achieving much up the other end, but baby steps and all that. Meanwhile Jeremy Gostick writes: “On the basis of the Pickford/Bradford comment, I think you mean ‘Notts County’s Jack Grealish’.” My mistake. I humbly apologise.
74 min: Grealish is making his presence felt out on the left. A couple of dribbles down the flank. One nearly ends with him finding Kane in the box with a cutback, but the England captain is swarmed by blue shirts and the ball’s cleared.
73 min: Dest is fine to continue. The game restarts.
72 min: Dest requires a spot of treatment after clattering into Shaw. “It’s lucky that England have got the Iran game out of the way, because if you went by their respective performances today you’d expect the latter to batter the former,” notes Kári Tulinius. “Football’s a funny old sport.”
70 min: Grealish dances in from the left, inviting a tackle that doesn’t come. He eventually runs out of road just inside the box, but that got the English blood pumping for the first time in a while.
69 min: Kane and Saka try to unlock the US down the inside-right channel, but Musah slams the door shut and clears.
68 min: England make a double change. Sterling and Bellingham off, Grealish and Henderson on.
66 min: England are doing very little by way of response to this US pressure. “A game of this magnitude, you’d think England would have played Kane and Sterling.” Paul Pooley, ladies and gentlemen, he’s here all week. Try the machbūs.
Photograph: Matthew Ashton/AMA/Getty Images
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64 min: Wright wins yet another US corner down the left, off Stones. Pulisic takes, and curls long. For a second, it looks as though the ball’s going to fly over his head and into the top right, but Pickford of Bradford fingertips out for a corner on the right this time. Zimmerman was tearing in, too, so that’s a doubly crucial intervention. Nothing comes of the next corner.
63 min: The USA continue to dominate. Their fans are giving it plenty. On the touchline, Gareth Southgate has the good grace to look concerned.
61 min: Robinson strides down the left and wins another US corner. That one leads to another, and from that one, Pulisic is found in a bit of space just inside the England box on the left. He should take a shot, but over-elaborates, dropping a shoulder to beat Shaw, who refuses to give way. England finally clear their lines.
59 min: Pulisic cuts in from the left and is allowed to pass four men too easily. His shot is deflected wide left. Bradford City’s Jordan Pickford gives his defenders the what-for. The resulting corner is headed clear by Maguire, under pressure from Zimmerman.
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57 min: Weah cuts back from an advanced position on the right, nearly finding the in-rushing Musah. Bellingham reads the danger and intercepts just before the US midfielder can shoot. “Please note Guardian house style,” begins Matt Tempest, formerly of this parish and therefore well schooled in finger-wagging. “At all times, England’s keeper must be referred to as ‘Bradford City’s Jordan Pickford’, on account of him playing a season at Valley Parade, on loan from Sunderland, in 2014-15. One game of which I saw. It’s not often you see a future England star at Valley Parade.”
55 min: Play restarts. Weah all good. Meanwhile here’s some more pessimism from over the briny, courtesy of Peter Donley: “I feel like the US team is being toyed with by the dominant English side. I’ve seen more compassion with my family cat playing with a caught mouse.”
54 min: Play stops for a moment as Weah gets some treatment, his foot having been accidentally stepped on by Shaw.
53 min: A chance for Mount to scamper into space down the middle. He miscontrols and allows the ball to sail through to Turner, who drops a shoulder to see off Sterling before passing clear.
51 min: Pulisic tears at pace down the left and has a chance of sending Musah free down the touchline, but his pass is no good. The USA have picked up where they left off. More of the same. England need to wake up quicksmart.
49 min: Space for Pulisic down the left. He lays off to Wright, whose shot is blocked by Stones. The ball breaks to McKennie, who blazes wildly over the bar. More composure and Pickford would have had some work to get on with.
48 min: A slow start to the second half. No obvious upsurge in England energy.
46 min: Meanwhile back home down Wembley Way, the FA have made their own One Love gesture.
The USMNT get the second half underway. No changes made by either side during the break.
Half-time Postbag O’Pessimism. US supporter Liisa Sletzinger writes: “Proclamations that USMNT are dominating right now feel grossly overstated. We seem to be trying our hardest (and still can’t shoot for crap) and England are yet to unleash.”
England fan John Davis adds: “The best thing about that half of football was finding out my local is doing two-pinters of Ghost Ship for £4.40. This carries on and Wales can knock us out in Tuesday.”
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HALF TIME: England 0-0 USA
The whistle goes after an extremely old-school period of added time: just one minute. The USA have been the better side. England head in to receive some tactical advice / a good classical rollocking.
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45 min +1: Shaw rolls a pass in from the left for Sterling, who immediately flicks it down the channel for Mount. A first-time shot is fizzed towards the bottom left. Turner turns it around the post, then claims the resulting corner.
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45 min: A bit of space down the right for Bellingham to sashay into. His long cross is hacked clear. Shaw picks up possession and comes down the left. He reaches the byline and cuts back for Saka, who improvises a flick that sails over the bar. Half a chance, that.
44 min: Shaw looks for Kane with a long diagonal from the left flank. Turner – confidence restored, those first-minute wobbles an awfully long time ago – comes out to claim without fuss.
43 min: Dest whips in from the right. Pulisic heads harmlessly wide left. Pickford shepherds the ball out for a goal kick. England could do with hearing the half-time whistle.
42 min: Dest tears clear on the overlap down the right. He drops a shoulder to cut into the box and looks for the top left. His shot deflects out off Maguire, who stuck to his task well. Maguire hoicks Pulisic’s corner clear.
40 min: Space for Wright down the right. His cross is too long and high for Pulisic, who was in a bit of space in the middle. For what it’s worth – and what it’s worth is 0p (0¢) – the USA are winning this on points.
39 min: McKennie throws long into the England box from the right. Wright spins and attempts to take on Maguire near the byline. He can’t get past but Maguire is forced to poke out for a corner. Nothing comes of the set piece, but the USA have the upper hand now.
38 min: The US look determined to catch England cold on the turn. McKennie takes a super-quick throw down the right wing and nearly releases Weah. A simple gambit, but it nearly works. England are being asked a few questions here.
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36 min: Shaw crosses in low from the left. Bellingham tries to flick cutely goalwards but can’t connect. Turner eventually takes control and hoofs long towards Pulisic down the left, who is only just beaten to the ball by Stones, racing across from the middle. A crucial intervention by Stones. Without it, Pulisic was free and England were in all sorts of bother.
34 min: Maguire on the left wing again. This time he can’t control, the ball clanking off his shin. Inner Garrincha all gone away!
33 min: McKennie makes good down the right. Musah shuttles the ball left to Pulisic, who drops a shoulder to make time and space before sending a rising shot towards the top-left corner. It beats Pickford but crashes off the bar and out for a goal kick. The USA are gaining in confidence all right!
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31 min: McKennie accidentally catches Mount in the face. No malice, no yellow.
30 min: Musah is upended by Stones, and that’s another England player who is slightly lucky not to see yellow. “I really feel like watching England would be a lot, lot easier if we could convert Harry Maguire into a midfielder or centre-forward,” begins James Dixon. No, hear him out. “Every time he has the ball in our half I can feel my chest tightening, yet whenever he’s in possession in the opposition half, I feel the same kind of spontaneous and irrepressible joy I’d get watching an adorable Newfoundland puppy playing in snow for the first time.”
29 min: Pulisic drives down the left and feeds Robinson, who in turn finds Musah. He sashays back infield and nearly runs into the referee, who doesn’t know which way to go. The ref finally sorts himself out and buggers off out of the road, allowing Musah to take a shot that’s deflected but nevertheless flies straight at Pickford, who claims. The US are growing in confidence.
28 min: Trippier slides in late on Robinson, and is slightly fortunate not to go into the book. There didn’t appear to be any malicious intent, to be fair. Merely mistimed.
26 min: Pulisic spins into space and drives down the middle. The ball’s shifted right to Dest, who reaches the byline before cutting back for Weah, who curls towards McKennie, in a bit of space near the penalty spot. The ball drops perfectly, but McKennie leans back and blazes over. He should have hit the target at the very least. He probably should have scored. The grim look on his coupon suggests he very much believes the latter. What a chance!
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24 min: Maguire creams a lovely diagonal pass down the left for Sterling, who drives into the US box and nearly gets the better of Dest. Not quite. The ball then pinballs around before being launched away from danger.
22 min: England slow it down again. All very professional.
20 min: The US roll a few passes to each other, then Dest makes good down the right. He swings the ball into the England box with plenty of pace. Pickford plucks it from the sky and dispenses some on-the-nose advice to his team-mates.
18 min: England make sure the US don’t start working up a head of steam, passing the ball around the back to re-establish a semblance of authority. With entertainment at a premium, the fans engage in a back-and-forth England! U!S!A! battle. A fine atmosphere. Hugh Molloy was spot on.
16 min: Shaw and Sterling attempt to link up down the left. Both hesitate. Shaw eventually trundles a pea-roller into the arms of Turner. The US counter and launch their first attack. A cross comes in from the right, and Wright gets ahead of Stones to flash a header wide of goal. The first sign of an American threat.
14 min: Saka again makes a nuisance of himself down the right, reaching the byline before standing one up for Kane. Robinson heads clear just in time, before Kane can connect.
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13 min: Such a shame Maguire couldn’t go all the way and walk the ball into the net. They’d have had to stop the entire tournament there and then. Football would have been completed. Game over. Where else would there be to go after that?
11 min: Some top entertainment as the corner’s hit long. Near the corner flag, Maguire channels his inner Garrincha – Harry Maguire channels his inner Garrincha – and dribbles past two people before the ball ricochets back to Mount, who blazes over.
10 min: Bellingham’s clearly fine, because he exchanges crisp passes with Saka down the inside-right channel. Saka cuts back for Kane, whose low shot is deflected wide right for the game’s first corner.
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9 min: Wright and Bellingham crash into each other as they contest a 50-50 ball. Both grimace, but both get back up.
8 min: England are enjoying more of the ball, but to little effect. The US are pressing them all the way.
6 min: Weah isn’t too far away from closing down a hesitant Maguire, but the England man gets the ball out from under his feet and away in the nick of time. Yep, not too much to report yet.
4 min: Robinson tries to take on Trippier down the left, but loses the first battle of the evening. Throw to England. It’s been a fairly quiet start, tell the truth.
3 min: Kane puts Turner under some more pressure. The US keeper appears a wee bit nervous during these early exchanges. He correctly executes his big hoof this time.
1 min: England pass it around the back in the patient style. Maguire and Stones giving each other a few touches. Then the ball’s shuttled upfield, where US keeper Turner shanks a clearance into the stand. Ironic cheers. A fine atmosphere at the Al-Bayt Stadium by the sounds of it.
England get the ball rolling. They take the knee beforehand.
The teams are out! England are dressed from tip to toe in white, changing their shorts because the normally similarly bedecked USA’s second-choice colours are blue. They sing their anthems. Mason Mount gets the lyrics of God Save The Queen (King remix) correct this time. The Star Spangled Banner is a much better number … so belated Thanksgiving thanks to John Stafford Smith and Francis Scott Key for that. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes.
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Gareth Southgate talks to ITV. “You’re always wondering whether you should refresh things, but this team deserved to go again. If I was a player I’d feel I’d earned the right. We’ve got great competition for places, but we were right to go with the same team. The USA put you under a lot of pressure and press well. It’ll be a different game and we have to find solutions. We have to be positive. We overcame the first challenge really well but that is done. This is a different sort of challenge.”
Pre-match firework display. Doha sure looks pretty at night. Meanwhile in other it-all-goes-off news, here’s Hugh Molloy: “I’m at the ground and the atmosphere is feral compared to England-Iran. Friday in Arabia is the first day of the weekend. All the expats have been at all-you-can-drink brunches (because Qatar is dry, right!) from noon and are on it. Going to be different.”
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England are in full If It Ain’t Broke mode. Having beaten Iran 6-2, Gareth Southgate names the same starting XI. That means Harry Kane has passed a fitness test on that dodgy ankle, while Harry Maguire has got over the illness that truncated his contribution last Monday.
Gregg Berhalter makes just one change to the side that started the 1-1 draw with Wales. Haji Wright of Turkish Süper Lig club Antalyaspor replaces Josh Sargent of Norwich City. There are five Premier League players starting tonight for the US: captain Tyler Adams (Leeds United), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea), Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson (Fulham) and Matt Turner (Arsenal).
The teams
England: Pickford, Trippier, Stones, Maguire, Shaw, Bellingham, Rice, Saka, Mount, Sterling, Kane.
Subs: Walker, Grealish, Henderson, Rashford, Pope, Phillips, Dier, Coady, Alexander-Arnold, Foden, White, Ramsdale, Wilson, Gallagher.
USA: Turner, Dest, Zimmerman, Ream, Robinson, McKennie, Adams, Musah, Weah, Wright, Pulisic.
Subs: Reyna, Ferreira, Aaronson, Horvath, de la Torre, Long, Morris, Roldan, Moore, Carter-Vickers, Yedlin, Acosta, Sargent, Johnson, Scally.
Referee: Jesús Valenzuela (Venezuela).
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Tonight’s USMNT. One change from the Wales match, with Haji Wright replacing Josh Sargent.
Let's get it. 🇺🇸
— U.S. Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) November 25, 2022
Full Lineup Notes » https://t.co/qSHZK24Kol#USMNT x @Visa pic.twitter.com/e6ny2Ve6Tq
The England team. Harry Kane fit, then.
An unchanged #ThreeLions side to face USA! 👊 pic.twitter.com/PpW7qzX3zJ
— England (@England) November 25, 2022
Updated
This is how Group B looks in the wake of Wales 0-2 Iran. Late, late heartbreak for Wales fans, who nevertheless gave Iran a wonderful reception as they went on a lap of honour.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| 2 | Iran | 2 | -2 | 3 |
| 3 | USA | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Wales | 2 | -2 | 1 |
Preamble
England first played the USA at the World Cup in 1950. As every schoolchild knows, it didn’t go well for them.
It didn’t go particularly well for them in 2010 either. Poor Rob.
Third time lucky? A win tonight for Gareth Southgate’s side will secure qualification for the knockout stage, and top spot in Group B. Hopes are high after that 6-2 rout of Iran. The USMNT’s unremarkable 1-1 draw with Wales isn’t quite so inspiring, but those two aforementioned World Cup meetings will give them succour, even if they’ve not beaten the English since the days of Graham Taylor. Kick-off is at 7pm GMT, 2pm ET and 10pm at the Al-Bayt Stadium in Al Khor. انه يحدث! It’s on!
