IRVINE, Calif. – Mike Tyson of Brooklyn said “everyone has a plan until they get beat.” But for the American national team, they changed the plan after the defeat.
In the first half of the last meeting with Australia, they were abused by the Socceroos on the field and were directed by Mauricio Pochettino in the dressing room. He shouted, clapped his hands, and climbed on them for lack of strength.
The physicality and fight they showed in the second half of that 2-1 win is exactly what they will need in Friday’s hot game in Seattle, a World Cup clash with first place in Group D on the line.
“They were facing tough challenges and we had to be tough,” said Haji Wright. “I remember going into the break, the coach wasn’t too happy about letting us punch us without retaliating. So, going into this game, we’ll be able to prepare more knowing what they’re going to be like.”
The US players are looking across the field at the Aussies as a team that will challenge them and bring out their best.
“It’s going to be a great game,” Sebastian Berhalter said. “They will fight and you like teams that have that brotherhood that when you fight with them you see that they are hungry and want to fight because that makes you raise your level a lot.”
Their final meeting on October 14 in Colorado was competitive and contentious, but ultimately constructive and educational, too.
“It was a really competitive game,” Tyler Adams said. “So we know a little bit what to expect; we need to prepare for it.”
The US faced difficulty after difficult encounter, with star player Christian Pulisic forced off in the first half with an injury after several tough challenges.
As Pochettino chastised his team at halftime – shown on the US soccer series “Behind the Crest” and the HBO documentary “US Against the World” – he urged his team to step up.
“They come and fight,” Pochettino said. “When are we going to fix that? … Match their fury.”
It’s been a recurring statement from Pochettino, which has gone deep. They actually had more fouls (16-10) in that game, got a brace from Wright, and got their fight back.
“[That] ‘we are American; we don’t take s–t,’ that’s what really drills us. Even though he’s from Argentina, he has that sense of ‘look, this is what we do, this is who we are, this is what America is about,’ ” Berhalter said.
Especially at the end of its tail.
It is too simplistic and reductive to suggest that the US had an epiphany that night against Australia, that the comeback against the Socceroos was a turning point. But it really was a turning point.
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“Yeah, the game in Colorado was fun,” Tim Weah said. “It was our first match against Australia, my first match against Australia.
“So, that experience was fun. It was aggressive. And in that Colorado game, we changed a lot. We got aggressive again. So, it’s going to be a great matchup. It’s going to be a great game. … It’s going to be an amazing game. And we have to come out aggressive, be very prepared.”
In some ways, the US has been preparing for months, learning lessons from its March defeats at the hands of Portugal and Belgium, or playing well but falling short in its final against Germany on June 6.
Or maybe there were no more lessons learned than against Australia.
Tyson’s famous quote said “Everybody has a plan until they get hit. Then, like a mouse, they stop in fear and freeze.”
The last time the US was beaten in the mouth by these Aussies, they finally broke down and fought back. It’s a lesson they should probably remember when they have to fight on Friday.
