It was grueling, it came at cost and it was a slog. But the U.S. men’s national team’s first job in Qatar is done. The Americans are headed to the knockout stage of the 2022 World Cup, beating Iran, 1–0, in a must-win Group B finale to finish second behind England and set up a last-16 showdown vs. the Netherlands on Saturday.
The U.S. entered winless in five straight, dating back to a draw vs. Uruguay in a friendly in June (a Japan loss and Saudi Arabia draw followed in September, before draws against Wales and England at the World Cup). According to Opta, it hadn’t gone winless in six since a stretch in 1998–99. That stretch included a ’98 World Cup loss to Iran, which was part of a futile effort in France. Whatever measure of revenge this is for a group of players who largely weren’t even alive then can be debated. But what is not up for debate is the U.S.’s World Cup fate—it’s advancing to the knockout phase and is faced with yet another opportunity.
It was Christian Pulisic who was the hero, with his 38th-minute goal delivering the moment that tilted the scales in the U.S.’s favor. He was hurt on the goal and forced out at halftime (according to U.S. Soccer, he’s been taken to the hospital for scans on an abdominal injury), but his job was done—and the U.S.’s is as well.
