07/06/2026

theSun on Sunday JUNE 7, 2026

2026 WORLD CUP

SPORTS 10

Group D USA, Paraguay, Australia & Turkey T HE United States head into World Cup Group D with everything to prove after a turbulent build-up marked by an unconvincing run of form that saw

US ‘golden generation’ raises expectations

WITH home advantage, a forgiving group draw, and a talented roster widely dubbed the United States’ “golden generation,” coach Mauricio Pochettino is daring fans to ask “Why not us?” The global superpower may historically be a footballing minnow, but football has boomed since the US last hosted in 1994, and the co-hosts are no longer merely making up the numbers. Young Americans now spearhead some of Europe’s top clubs, from Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie at Serie A giants AC Milan and Juventus, to captain Tyler Adams at the Premier League’s high-flying Bournemouth. “I am here because I believe that we can win,” said Pochettino, the Argentine manager who took over the co-hosts’ side in late 2024. “Why not us? Why not us? Why not us? We need to really believe that we can be there,” said the for mer Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain coach. Of course, nobody is talking about the US in the same breath as favorites like France, Spain and Argentina. For one thing, the US would surely need to beat top European or South American opposition to progress deep into the tournament. Though Pochettino’s men defeated Uruguay and Paraguay last year, those statement wins were followed in March by a 5-2 thrashing against Belgium and a lop-sided 2-0 loss to Portugal, expos ing long-standing frailties against the world’s elite. Worries over star forward Pulisic’s form in Milan have also dampened the optimism about a deep American run. but he ended his goal drought and Folarin Balogun rifled in the winner as a

to go further on home soil, knowing the likes of Marseilles winger Timothy Weah have gone from strength to strength since 2022. Pulisic, McKennie and Weah are the bright est home-grown talents who have thrived at Champions League clubs. McKennie, in particular, has become so vital running Juventus’s midfield that Pochettino recently joked the Serie A club is Americans, like British-raised striker Balogun, who is likely to lead the US line off the back of a hot scoring streak at Ligue 1’s Monaco. Other dual-national threats include full backs Sergino Dest and Antonee Robinson – born in the Netherlands and England, respec tively – and German-born Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Malik Tillman. Finally, the squad will draw on a handful of Major League Soccer stars, including Real Salt Lake’s Diego Luna, in what is sure to be a tell ing test of the strength of the booming US domestic league. USA did not even qualify for a World Cup for four decades until 1990, but it has only missed one since, regularly progressing beyond the group stage. Its best achievement of the modern era came in 2002, when Bruce Arena’s men eliminated Portugal in the group stage, beat Mexico in the knockouts, before falling in the quarter-finals to Germany. Making the final eight again likely serves as the baseline for the 2026 campaign to be considered a success. Beyond that? “We “Weston McKennie plus 10 players.” Then there is a group of diaspora

much-improved United States beat Senegal 3 2 in a pre-World Cup friendly in Charlotte on June 1. Pulisic was delighted with the win over “a really good team” in Senegal. “I thought we just brought so much energy right from the start. The early press. The way we created chances,” he said. “We could have had even more. I’m really happy with the performance.” Pochettino recently admitted that his roster features none of the world’s top 100 players. Still, the US took the tournament’s second youngest squad to the last World Cup in Qatar, where they did creditably to reach the last 16, falling to the Netherlands. And the co hosts will aim

them comfortably beaten by elite European opposition in their two most recent friendlies. After experimenting with a wide range of players following his first game in charge in 2024, US coach Mauricio Pochettino will look to a core of experienced European-based per sonnel for group games against Paraguay, Australia and Turkey. Paraguay will provide the first test for Pochettino’s men when they meet at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on June 13 (9am Malaysian time). The South Americans are returning to the World Cup after a 16-year absence following a comfortable qualifying campaign that saw them finish level on points with Brazil, Ecuador and Colombia. Paraguay arrive at the tournament brim ming with confidence thanks to a resurgence inspired by Argentine coach Gustavo Alfaro, who took over after the team’s dismal 2024 Copa America campaign, when they failed to earn a single point. Australia qualified for their sixth straight consecutive World Cup after finishing second in Asia’s Group C behind Japan. Tony Popovic replaced Graham Arnold dur ing qualifiers and oversaw a successful cam paign that included a notable 1-0 win over Japan last year. The Australians are aiming to emulate their class of 2022, who reached the last 16 and gave eventual champions Argentina a scare before exiting in a 2-1 defeat. European qualifiers Turkey could well prove to be the biggest threat to US hopes of a safe passage to the knockout rounds. The Turks are back at the World Cup after a 24-year absence, after failing to qualify for five consecutive tournaments following their memorable third place finish at the 2002 finals in South Korea and Japan.

Mauricio Pochettino

need to dream... Dreams inspire

reality,” said Pochettino.

Paraguay bank on Alfaro’s psychology-driven approach

GUSTAVO ALFARO is being hailed in Paraguay as the key figure behind the rapid turnaround of a team who had struggled in South American qualify ing and are now World Cup-bound, with many crediting a strategy rooted in psychology. Since taking over in August 2024, the 63-year-old Argentine manager has won over both players and fans with results and a motivational style, often drawing on authors and historical fig ures to reinforce soccer-related ideas. Alfaro led Paraguay to a sixth-place finish in the South American qualifi ers, securing the continent’s final automatic World Cup berth and the country’s first appearance on interna tional soccer’s biggest stage since 2010. Alfaro has said he keeps a notebook of reflections to use when he wants to strengthen a concept within the group, having cited the likes of Albert Einstein and five-times Formula One world champion Juan Manuel Fangio. Quotes such as “We triumph and fail less than we think,” by Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, are among those he has used during a career that has included spells with Ecuador, Costa Rica and Boca Juniors. Alfaro urged players to rediscover the “grit” long associated with Paraguay and to believe they can com pete with powerhouses such as Brazil

Gomez to reach the knockout stage, after conceding only 10 goals in 18 qualifying matches. While Paraguay’s greatest strength lies in their intensity and physicality, they can also produce good football, building smoothly from the back and relying on the gamechanging talent of Julio Enciso – one of the greatest play ers produced by Paraguayan football in the last 20 years. La Joya (The Jewel) amazed with his talent in Libertad – who gave jobs to both his mother, a house cleaner, and his father, a street vendor, to con vince them to move to Asuncion when their son was just 12 – and debuted for moments in Brighton, scoring a Puskas Award-worthy screamer against Man City, however injuries and managerial changes gradually eroded his impact. Fast and direct, a difference-maker, a gamechanger in the final third, Enciso is a special talent. In honour of his grandfather, he fulfilled his dream of playing in a World Cup: “I dedicate this to him. He’s surely watching me from heaven.” But tyhe entire team structure the national team at 17 before making the bold leap to the Premier League. He had some good

and Argentina, echoing their historic 2010 campaign in South Africa, when they reached the quarterfinals before losing to eventual winners Spain. He brought a psychologist into his coaching staff for individual sessions tailored to each player and forged a strong connection with fans as results improved – the coach was once hugged by a supermarket worker in tears and had his face tattooed by another fan. Paraguay’s remarkable qualifying campaign under Alfaro included climbing from the bottom of the stand ings, a nine-match unbeaten run and victories over Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. After defeating Brazil, Alfaro told reporters: “All I had to do was shake the tree a little so the spiders would fall off and we could realise the tree was full of fruit.” He described the win over Uruguay as “the mother of all battles”. Results dipped later in qualifying and friendlies, raising questions over whether his approach will be enough on the global stage, as Paraguay pre pare to debut against co-hosts the United States in Los Angeles on June 13. Also facing Australia and Turkey in Group D, the South American team will rely on a solid defensive system led by 33-year-old captain Gustavo

relies on Andres Cubas. He provides balance, wins duels and fights for every ball as if it were his last chal lenge. Although he is primarily a defensive midfielder, Cubas is also capable of initiating quick transitions into attack after regaining possession. Born in Argentina, and a former Argentina international at U-20 level, Cubas promised his mother – who was born in Paraguay – that he would rep resent her country if he was given the chance. At 5ft 6in he is not physically imposing, but his intelligence, posi tioning and tenacity more than make up for it.

Gustavo Alfaro