Soccer & football call it a draw as USMNT & England stay in control of their own World Cup destinies

The USMNT's 0-0 draw with England on Friday probably won't live long in the memory of supporters, but the result is likely what both coaches were looking for.

Results in Group B from the opening day meant that both teams were left well in control of their own destiny. Despite only drawing 1-1 with Wales in their opener, the USMNT knew it was 'win and in' against Iran, regardless of how Friday went. England, meanwhile, were in control after their resounding 6-2 win over the Iranians.

Still, as clear favorites, the onus was on England to dominate proceedings and take the game to the United States. However, despite a promising open 15 minutes, that never really transpired.

An excellent performance from the midfield unit of Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, and Yunus Musah suffocated England and ensured that, as the game went on, it was the USMNT who had the platform to dominate. Adams especially, was impressive, shutting down England's best players all over the pitch, covering every single blade of grass, and turning defense into attack in an instant.

In the end, Gregg Berhalter's side had the best of it, without ever really doing enough to lay a convincing claim to three points. Christian Pulisic hit the bar in the 33rd minute, while McKennie missed a couple of decent opportunities.

But credit must be given to England - and especially Harry Maguire, who was a rock at the heart of the defense despite serious questions surrounding his inclusion - for defending well and limiting the US to low-percentage chances.

“It was a really tough opponent. They defended incredibly well,” said Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate. “Their front six make it so difficult to play through and get at their defense. The angles that the USA team press with is unbelievably difficult.

“We lacked a little bit of zip and quality in the final third and we weren't able to open up to create really good chances. But we had to show another side of ourselves in terms of the resilience without the ball, the recovery runs, defending our box well, defending any number of corners and set plays that came in.”

The impressive McKennie observed: “It felt like we dominated the game. I think we had the more clear-cut chances. Obviously, it sucks that we couldn't put the ball in the back of the net and come out with the win and three points. But the most important thing is that we control the outcome of our journey in this tournament, with the last game against Iran.”

The latter part of McKennie's statement is the most important. Sure, it would have been exciting to see Gio Reyna, Brenden Aaronson, and Josh Sargent introduced earlier. But this was a game of chess in which it wouldn't have been beyond the realms of possibility for England to exploit overcommitment from the United States.

A draw means the USMNT must beat Iran rather than being able to draw. But perhaps the confidence gained from not only hanging with, but dominating one of the pre-tournament favorites is more valuable than the two extra points. The United States will fancy themselves against Iran, now, if they can replicate Friday's levels.

“I mean, it's one of the best teams that we just played, in the world right now. And we were able to go toe to toe with them and maybe even deserve three points out of that game,” said Sargent. “So I think that should give all the fans a lot of hope to see how far we can get in this thing.”

Neither soccer nor football won on Friday. Instead, it was a game that both were desperate not to lose. They achieved just that and remain in control of their own destinies.

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