Kaan Ayhan struck with the final kick of the match as Turkiye stunned co-hosts the United States 3-2 in a thrilling World Cup Group D encounter in Los Angeles, ending the Americans’ hopes of completing an unbeaten group-stage campaign.
Although the USA had already secured top spot in the group before kickoff, Mauricio Pochettino’s heavily rotated side looked on course to rescue a point after twice coming from behind. However, Ayhan’s 98th-minute winner handed Turkiye their first victory of the tournament and provided a timely confidence boost ahead of the knockout rounds.
Pochettino made nine changes to the team that defeated Australia, with only Weston McKennie and Ricardo Pepi retaining their places in the starting lineup. Despite the changes, the hosts made the perfect start.
Defender Auston Trusty fired the USA ahead after just three minutes, controlling Sebastian Berhalter’s deep corner before smashing the ball past Ugurcan Cakir. It was the second-fastest goal the Americans have ever scored at a FIFA World Cup, highlighting their tendency to begin matches aggressively.
Turkiye responded almost immediately and finally ended their long wait for a goal in the competition. Arda Guler finished confidently past Matt Turner after an excellent reverse pass from Baris Alper Yilmaz, giving the Crescent-Stars their first World Cup goal after failing to score from their previous 62 attempts across the opening two matches.
The visitors grew stronger as the first half progressed and completed the turnaround in the 31st minute. Eren Elmali burst down the left before cutting the ball back into the penalty area, where Orkun Kokcu’s effort took a slight deflection off Yilmaz and found the back of the net.
The USA nearly equalised before halftime through Mark McKenzie, but his effort was ruled out for offside. They eventually restored parity shortly after the restart when McKenzie’s long throw caused chaos inside the Turkish penalty area. The loose ball fell kindly to Berhalter, whose superb half-volley from the edge of the box bounced past Cakir to make it 2-2.
Christian Pulisic made his long-awaited return from injury during the second half and almost inspired the hosts to victory. The captain forced an outstanding fingertip save from Cakir before curling another effort narrowly wide as the Americans pushed for a winner.
Instead, Turkiye had the final say deep into stoppage time. Can Uzun delivered an inviting cross into the six-yard box, where Ayhan stretched to poke the ball beyond Turner, silencing the crowd and sealing a dramatic victory for the European side.
Despite registering only nine shots compared to the USA’s 18, Turkiye created the better opportunities and finished with a higher expected goals (xG) tally of 2.71 to the Americans’ 2.06. After two frustrating defeats to open the tournament, the result was a deserved reward for their improved attacking display.
For the United States, the defeat does little damage to their campaign, with top spot in Group D already secured. However, it continues a worrying trend against European opposition, with the Americans now winning just one of their last 20 World Cup matches against UEFA nations.
The USA will now turn their attention to a Round of 32 showdown against Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Turkiye head into the knockout stage with renewed belief after finally finding their scoring touch and producing one of the most dramatic finishes of the tournament so far.
