USA vs. Turkey: What's the Right Approach?

The United States faces Turkey in a FIFA World Cup Group D finale on Thursday at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. With Team USA having already clinched the top spot in the group and Turkey mathematically eliminated, Mauricio Pochettino's squad will likely rest key starters. Tim Kolacz, the host of Soccer in 60, an Empire Strykers-affiliated radio program about all things soccer, which airs on Thursdays at 4:00 P.M. on Kmet 1490 ABC News and Sports Radio of the Inland Empire, agreed but set some keen expectations. 

“Even though the USA has won the group and will play a 3rd place team in the Round of 32, I would find it hard to believe that most players who started the first two games will not start the game on Thursday. I believe that there will be some shifting, but a full new 11 will most likely not happen, nor should it. I would play about 5 or 6 normal starters, and then sub in several other non-starters. You want all your guys to play, but you also don’t want to go down 2 nil early and then have the crowd go against you. I know that I paid my hard-earned dough to go on Thursday, and I wouldn’t want to see the USA lose 3- 0. Not saying that they would, but you want that momentum and more than anything, you want to keep the confidence very high going into the next game on July 6th. The other thing is, if Pulisic is healthy, do you play him the first 30 minutes to get him in game shape? Otherwise, it will have been over 3 weeks since he played a game, and while he’s Capt. America, he’s still human and needs some game minutes. I expect the US to win, but I would keep it at about 5 or 6 new guys and several normal starts and then sub them out at half or the 60-minute mark.” 

The World Cup is where the attention of soccer fans is focused now, but in November, arena soccer will be back locally, and fans looking for an indoor soccer league near me or high-octane indoor soccer in California can come watch the Empire Strykers, the premier arena soccer team serving the Inland Empire. If you are looking to buy Strykers season tickets or single-game Empire Strykers tickets to watch professional MASL soccer live, you can find them at www.theempirestrykers.com. Fans can also head over to the team store to gear up with their favorite Empire Strykers fan gear for the fast-paced indoor action.