By Dennis Miller
The last pool play game for the United States presents some interesting options as they get ready to play Türkiye when it comes to predicting a final score.
On paper it looks like a meaningless game. The United States has already won their pool and have advanced to the Round of 32. Win or lose today – nothing can change.
Türkiye – the artist formerly known as Turkey – has been eliminated and will be playing their final match of the 2026 World Cup.
The situations give the United State the luxury of not playing its players with yellow cards, risking a possible suspension if they picked up another card. The yellow card compilation resets after pool play, giving everyone a clean slate.
I am going to disagree with the feeling it’s a meaningless game. The United States is riding a two-game win streak that has built up the most momentum the U.S. has ever seen in a World Cup.
If they go out and play poorly against Türkiye, that momentum is brought to a standstill. The U.S. needs to go out and play well, keeping the level of excitement high.
Playing poorly and then having everyone saying “well, it didn’t matter so no big deal,” would be a huge mistake and a dangerous place to be.
I don’t think it will be a problem and fully expect the United States to come out, play well, and get a convincing win. The team has depth and this game is a great chance to showcase exactly how deep this team is.
Here is how Ballistic United coaches/staff think will happen.
Daniel Montes: 3-0 United States – U.S. shows no mercy.
Tewfik Boutaleb: God willing the score will be United States 2, Turkiye 1.
Kevin Crow: 2-1 USA – the depth will show.
Ken Villegas: 2-1 USA.
Darryl Watson: With the need to rest some players given injuries or yellow card accumulation…predicting a 1-0 win. They won’t benefit from an early own goal and this team will need to deal with a Turkey team looking to make a statement with their final game.
Dennis Miller: The momentum must continue and with a load of players getting their first World Cup experience, the U.S. will roll by a 4-0 final. Turkiye will quit in the second half and turn in a turkey of a game.
