USA Player Ratings vs Turkey: Berhalter and Trusty Shine

Mauricio Pochettino rolled the dice in goal and leaned on some familiar faces in the outfield, but a chaotic USA performance against Turkey left as many questions as answers. A set-piece goal, a stunning strike from distance, and some nervy defending told the story of a team still trying to work out its identity on the biggest stage.

Player Ratings

Here’s how the Americans rated.

Matt Turner – 4

Given a surprise start, Turner needed a statement performance. He didn’t deliver it. Beaten by all three shots on target, he never found the one big save that can flip a narrative, and his already fading case to start ahead of Matt Freese took another hit. He did read danger well off his line with a couple of timely sweeper actions, and he now joins a small group of US goalkeepers to start multiple World Cups. That’s a notable club. It just won’t shield him from scrutiny after this outing.

Joe Scally – 5

Tasked with a more conservative role than Sergiño Dest or Alex Freeman usually offer, Scally stayed at home but never looked fully at ease. Turkey repeatedly asked questions down his side and, on their second goal, he was pulled out of position twice in the same move. His deliveries in the final third rarely troubled the visitors. The right-back job remains wide open, and this display didn’t nail it down for him.

Mark McKenzie – 5

The game got away from him early. McKenzie was bypassed far too easily on Turkey’s opener, a moment that set the tone for a jittery start at the back. His long distribution misfired, with several ambitious balls failing to find their targets. He did have a poacher’s finish from a corner chalked off for offside, a reminder of his threat on set pieces. Out of possession, he did his part in steering play into midfield, but with full-backs carrying most of the progression burden, his influence on the ball felt muted.

Miles Robinson – 5

Nervy at the start, unsettled whenever the ball came near his zone in the opening stages. Robinson eventually calmed down and grew into the match, but the numbers tell their own story: he led the team in “phases lost,” per Futi, through errant passing and hesitation in possession. The physical tools are still there. The composure and clarity on the ball need to catch up quickly.

Auston Trusty – 7

Still looks like a square peg at times in a wing-back or full-back role, but when the ball is in the air in the box, he’s exactly where he wants to be. Trusty powered home the opening goal from a corner, attacking the delivery with conviction and timing. Beyond the goal, he stood out as a reliable outlet in build-up, offering passing angles and helping the USA escape pressure. Defensively, he tracked back diligently to limit Turkey’s joy down their right. The concern came late, when he exited with what appeared to be a left ankle injury. On a day when he was one of the clear positives, that’s a worrying footnote.

Sebastian Berhalter – 8

This was his game. Berhalter arrived in the squad largely on the strength of his set-piece quality, and he repaid Pochettino’s trust in full. First came the assist: a pinpoint dead-ball delivery that Trusty buried for the opener. Then, his own moment of brilliance, another strike from the edge of the area added to a growing highlight reel of long-range finishes. Between those headline moments, he knitted the team together. By far the USA’s most progressive passer on the day, he constantly looked to move the ball forward, break lines, and inject tempo. Some defensive duties slipped by him, but those won’t dominate the clips. His attacking influence will.

Weston McKennie – 7

With Cristian Roldan sidelined, McKennie stepped in and took the armband. He didn’t produce one of his all-action, everywhere-at-once performances, but he still carried a presence. When the match got thorny, he kept a spark under his teammates, demanding more intensity and bite. He found space for a few efforts on goal, though only one tested the keeper. Not his most spectacular night, yet he remained one of the emotional anchors of the side.

Gio Reyna – 5

The lack of recent extended minutes showed. Reyna moved intelligently, constantly presenting himself as a passing option between the lines, but too often chose the safe recirculation instead of the killer pass. The talent to split defenses is there; the risk-taking wasn’t. Even so, he finished with the second-most box-entry passes on the team, trailing only Berhalter. The structure ran through him at times, but the cutting edge that once defined his game stayed mostly under wraps.

Tim Weah – 5

Shifted again to his weaker side, a recurring Pochettino experiment built around Weah’s so-called “dominant eye.” On this evidence, it remains an open debate. From the left, Weah’s touch deserted him too often, his passes went astray, and his dribbles rarely carried threat. For a veteran presence in this group, he offered more perspiration than penetration. The staff clearly trusts his versatility, but this role continues to look like a compromise.

Brenden Aaronson – 5

All energy, not enough end product. In his first World Cup start, the Leeds midfielder did what he always does: ran relentlessly, pressed high, and tried to stretch the play to the right flank. The moment that will haunt him came in front of goal, when he failed to convert an unobstructed chance at an open net. That miss hung over his performance. The work rate was never in doubt; the finishing touch was.

Ricardo Pepi – 5

Pepi’s movement did its job. He dragged Turkey’s center-backs into deeper areas, opened pockets for runners, and tried to occupy both defenders at once. The problem came where it matters most for a No. 9: in the box. He struggled to find meaningful touches in dangerous areas and saw his only shot skew off target. For a striker heavily linked with a big-money move to Fulham, the $35m man in waiting left this one without the statement performance many expected.

The USA found moments of quality, especially from Berhalter and Trusty, but the gaps at both ends of the pitch were hard to ignore. With the World Cup grind only getting tougher, Pochettino now has to decide: stick with these growing pains, or shake up a side that still feels one or two big calls away from its true form.