Only other initial thought

by Mark, Monday, June 22, 2026, 17:56 (33 days ago) @ Mark
edited by Mark, Monday, June 22, 2026, 18:05

We spent of bit of time discussing what might happen next for the US squad this WC. …

The US should win their round of 32 matchup (see Most Likely Opponents at bottom), but the round of 16 could be their first legit big time game vs a dominate world class team (France or Norway). If this theory plays out, hopefully the US will continue to gel as a team and rise to the occasion, but there are much better teams and much better coaches than what the US has faced so far … Those better coaches will have better disciplined teams that may stifle the US’s current strategy.

My only question is how will Mauricio Pochettino adjust his current strategy when his squad finally faces a team with enough discipline to handle his current strategy?

Here’s what gemini AI kicked out for the US’s potential round of 32 matchups (based on the prediction markets and current games completed as of yesterday):

Summary of Most Likely Opponents
If the tournament ended today, the highest-probability opponents for the U.S. from this cluster would be:
1. Bosnia and Herzegovina (or the winner of Bosnia/Qatar)
2. Ecuador
3. Senegal
4. Netherlands or Japan (the highest-profile "landmines" in this pool)

Holland or Japan would give me anxiety. Senegal should give me anxiety, but doesnt. I expect this US team to handle B&H or Qatar or Ecuador without issue.