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The United States kicked off their World Cup campaign with a dominant 4-1 win against Paraguay in Los Angeles on Friday, setting the tone for Group D.
Goals from Giovanni Reyna and Folarin Balogun, alongside a little help from a Paraguay own goal, proved too much for the South American side, as ex-Paris Saint-Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino’s team romped home to victory.
Despite the immense pressure of the occasion, the US side were superb in the opening 45 minutes, before a classy outside-of-the-boot finish sealed the win late in the game.
It was an energetic and hugely promising display from a nation that has long hoped of joining the realms of international football’s elite.
The US will undoubtedly face sterner tests should they progress in the tournament, but the victory over Paraguay should not be dismissed. Paraguay notched up some strong results in the qualification stage, beating Brazil, Uruguay, Chile and Argentina at home.
Speaking after the game, US forward Christian Pulisic, who was substituted at halftime as an injury precaution, said it was “just the start of a long journey”.
“We’ve got a lot more to do. It’s a really, really great start, we should be proud. But we’ve got to keep pushing and be ready for the next one,” he said.
Pochettino praised his side’s performance, but the Argentine also stressed that it was “only one game”.
“We need to keep improving,” he said in a post-match press conference.
Some of Hollywood’s biggest names were in attendance for the match at LA’s SoFi stadium, including Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio. England football legend David Beckham was also at the game alongside his wife, the singer and fashion designer Victoria Beckham.
Pop star Katy Perry performed ahead of the game in an opening ceremony for the tournament, which got underway on Thursday night with Mexico’s 2-0 win over 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa in Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca.
Cohosts Canada also made a decent start to the tournament, snatching a 1-1 draw against a strong Bosnia and Herzegovina team.
Cyle Larin equalised for Canada in the 78th minute after Jovo Lukic had put Bosnia ahead midway through the first half.
Canada lost every one of its group games at the Qatar 2022 World Cup, so will be hoping to build on the momentum in its upcoming fixtures against Qatar and Switzerland.
The 2026 tournament is the largest ever World Cup, with the expanded format seeing a record 1,248 players from 48 teams taking part in matches across Canada, Mexico and the US.