For the second time in as many 2026 World Cup games, I expect the USA will have the majority of possession on Friday against Australia. The looks that the team will see, though, will be very different. The way Australia will defend the USA will be very different compared with Paraguay. It will be up to head coach Mauricio Pochettino to make sure his team is flexible in how it can attack the Aussies in Seattle. Here's what to expect from USA vs. Australia. There will be a similar defensive approach from Australia on Friday, like what the USA saw against Paraguay in its opening game, but it will be slightly different. Paraguay played in more of a mid-block. What does that mean? While the team had plenty of numbers behind the ball, its focus was more on defending the middle of the field. Australia will play a lower block and sit even deeper than Paraguay. The Socceroos will defend in a back five compared with Paraguay's back four. With that, the Aussies will sit further back and be very content to soak up pressure. I'd expect that there's only going to be about 20 to 25 yards of space between the Australia defense and its striker. One way to look at that is the cut of grass. Usually, those are about six yards long. Player To Watch Souttar was absolutely immense in Australia's win over Trkiye. His positioning was flawless, and he won everything in the air. He was very much leading the defensive line as it moved up and down the field and kept the team in very good shape. Given how I expect Australia to play and defend Friday, the player in the center of defense, the anchor, will be crucial. If the Australians are going to get a result and stay strong defensively, it will start with him. I think Australia is going to be harder for the USA to break down than Paraguay was. It's much more difficult to break down a low block compared to a mid-block, which Paraguay used. Trkiye struggled to create quality chances against Australia, despite having more than 25 shots. There were few clear-cut scoring chances where you'd expect someone to score. For the USA, adapting to how Australia plays and figuring out what works will be crucial. Is it getting the ball wide and swinging crosses into the box? Is it trying to overload Australia in wide areas? Trkiye struggled to adapt and find solutions, so the USA will have to learn from that. I expect that USA head coach Mauricio Pochettino will have training sessions this week that will very much be focused on breaking down a low block. Player To Watch Dest was quietly effective but didn't get too much attention against Paraguay. That makes sense with Folarin Balogun scoring twice and Christian Pulisic thriving on the left wing during his 45 minutes in the first half. Dest was positionally disciplined against Paraguay. If he maintains that, I think we'll see a couple more moments of him getting one-on-one opportunities against a defender in wide positions. If Dest is able to attack his defender and beat the first man in front of him, he'll be able to unbalance the Australian backline. He'll also be responsible for either putting in good service from the right wing or fighting to find position at the back post if the attack is coming from the left.

SportsLine's Martin Green reveals his Australia vs. USA best bets for their FIFA World Cup 2026 match on Friday

MILWAUKEE (AP) Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Quinn Priester will undergo season-ending surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome and is expected to be sidelined for eight to 10 months.Thoracic outlet syndrome is a disorder that occurs when blood vessels or nerves in the space between the collarbone and first rib are compressed. That can lead to neck and shoulder pain, numbness or tingling in the fingers, and arm weakness.Priester's thoracic outlet decompression surgery will be performed on Monday in Dallas by surgeon Dr. Gregory Pearl and will involve the removal of the first upper rib on the right side.Priester said he hopes to compete for a rotation spot next spring.After doing all the things that we had gone through to try and fix this problem without surgery, weve just kind of gotten to a point where these things arent working, so were going to get surgery and make sure we clean this up and so that for the rest of my career this isnt an issue, Priester said before the Brewers game against Cleveland on Thursday.The Brewers called Priester back from his minor league rehabilitation assignment on June 12 to evaluate the next steps in his recovery.I feel really confident that (Im) going to come back even better, Priester said.Priester was a key cog in the teams rotation a season ago when he went 13-3 with a 3.32 ERA in 29 appearances, including 24 starts, for a team that made it to the National League Championship Series before losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Priester was expected to play a major role again this season in a rotation that so far has been led by hard-throwing Jacob Misiorowski and newcomer Kyle Harrison. Priester has not pitched in the majors this season.Priester said he wanted to check every box before deciding on surgery.The condition caused considerable control issues during the rehab stints, Priester said.In five rehab games at Triple-A Nashville, two in Arizona and one at High-A Wisconsin, Priester had a 15.75 ERA and 2.88 WHIP in 16 innings, with 24 walks, 18 strikeouts, four hit batters and six wild pitches.When the brain and arm are communicating the right way because of the nerves that are pinching in there, it makes it nearly impossible to actually create a result thats repeatable, he said. It was great that we had gotten the pain to go away with the nerve blocks, but essentially, we couldnt alleviate all the symptoms.Priester said the full recovery time for the surgery is expected to be eight to 10 months, but the 25-year-old is confident he can beat the timeline. Im still a pretty young guy that may be able to make that a little bit quicker, be diligent with the work and be ready to compete for a spot in spring training next year, Priester said.Philadelphia Phillies ace Zack Wheeler underwent a successful thoracic outlet decompression surgery in September 2025 and made an earlier-than-expected return. Wheeler made his debut this season on April 25 and has a 6-1 record with a 2.01 ERA.___AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

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There were tears of joy for Raul Jimenez as he finally scored a goal at his fourth World Cup - a lifetime dream that had seemed impossible a few years ago.

Ben Stokes will make his return to cricket after being dropped for this week's second Test against New Zealand.Stokes will play in Durham's County Championship game against Northamptonshire, which begins on Friday.Both Stokes and Gus Atkinson were dropped after breaching a midnight curfew following the series opener at Lord's.Rather than stepping away from the sport temporarily, Stokes will return to action with his home county and will feature in this week's Division Two fixture.TRENDINGStoriesVideosYour Say"Ben sent me a text and then gave me a phone call and said that he really needed to play and wanted to play for Durham," the county's head coach, Ryan Campbell, told Sky Sports News.He continued: "We're always backing our players, and the guy needs to play cricket, so we are very welcome to have him here."He's in our 11 and will take part tomorrow. He will have ball in hand or bat probably five or six with us. "We're still debating whether he should open the bowling for us but he's going to be right in the thick of the action."LATEST SPORTS NEWSRichards brands Lineker 'irrelevant' after Kane shoots England to Croatia World Cup winWorld Cup military row erupts as Son Heung-min and South Korea boycott media dutiesThere are positives and negatives to take but England did their main job... winStokes and Atkinson are both under investigation by the ECB following the incident.The ECB said in a statement last week: "The ECB is currently investigating a breach of team protocols following the conclusion of the first men's Test against New Zealand."Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson were present at a nightclub in the early hours of Monday morning when an incident took place."We are currently seeking further information, and an announcement regarding the squad for the second Test will be made in due course."The Cricket Regulator has been informed, and we will provide a further update when possible."A midnight deadline was introduced following an incident in Wellington before the Ashes, when white-ball captain Harry Brook was struck by a nightclub bouncer on the eve of a one-day international against New Zealand.That restriction was initially implemented for the Sri Lanka white-ball tour in January and the subsequent T20 World Cup, continuing into the current Test summer under Stokes' captaincy.England were criticised for their off-field behaviour during their heavy defeat to Australia.Director of cricket Rob Key conducted an investigation into the Noosa excursion but rejected suggestions that the squad had developed a drinking culture. He said: "I'm not going to lie, I'm very, very happy that we've won this week."I knew how big this game was in terms of the result and how it was going to be perceived externally if it didn't go well."I won't be really happy until I get to share a beer with the boys."Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter

While the human cost is clear, the Iranian regime has not just survived the war, it has been empowered.

Michal Sadilek hat die Tschechen frh in Fhrung gebracht, das Spiel bewegt scih auf berschaubarem Niveau. Die Partie aus Atlanta hier im Liveticker und im Audiostream.[mehr]

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