Auston Trusty endured a night of mixed emotions after scoring his maiden international goal before being forced off on a stretcher during the USA’s dramatic 3-2 defeat to Turkey.
Handed his first start of the tournament by Mauricio Pochettino, the Celtic defender was deployed at left-back after beginning the competition on the bench, having watched the Americans record victories over Paraguay and Australia.
Trusty made an immediate impact, opening the scoring after just three minutes. The Hoops centre-back showed impressive composure to bring the ball under control before clinically finishing with his left foot for his first goal in USA colours.
Turkey responded quickly, with Arda Guler restoring parity before Baris Yilmaz completed the turnaround to give his country a 2-1 advantage heading into the interval.
The United States were back on level terms shortly after the restart when Sebastian Berhalter found the net in the 49th minute.
However, Turkey snatched victory in the closing stages through Kaan Ayhan. Trusty suffered an ankle injury while desperately attempting to prevent the decisive effort from crossing the line, with the defender requiring a stretcher as he left the pitch.
Reflecting on the disappointing evening, Trusty admitted his immediate concern was the injury.
Thrashed in by Auston Trusty 😤
The USA are off to a flyer in Los Angeles! pic.twitter.com/czjuBNeaBz
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 26, 2026
“I can’t really react to it.”
“Honestly, I am in my head right now. I rolled my ankle pretty bad. How am I feeling? I’ll be alright. Honestly, I don’t know — heard a little something, but I’ll be fine. No worries.”
“Obviously, we won the group. That’s a positive. I think this is just one of those losses that we put behind, learn from it.”
Despite the defeat, the USA had already done enough to finish top of their group and will now face Bosnia in the Round of 32.
The fixture could also attract Celtic interest, with Bosnia internationals Benjamin Tahirovic and Ivan Basic both continuing to be linked with moves to the Scottish champions.
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