Australia defender Kai Trewin wished his New York City FC teammate and US goalkeeper Matt Freese good luck before their upcoming World Cup match but said he aims to help Australia defeat him. "Obviously there's lots, lots of pressure for him and for the U.S., obviously playing on home soil. So I just wished him the best," Trewin said, adding he hopes for a positive result against the US while also wishing Freese well for the rest of the tournament [1].
Trewin, 25, and midfielder Aiden O'Neill earned their World Cup spots due to strong performances with the MLS club New York City FC. O'Neill said, "We're excited to play against each other. Obviously, he's a top keeper, Matt, and it would be good to get one up on him" in the match [1, 2].
Matt Freese conceded just one goal during the US's 4-1 win over Paraguay in the World Cup opener. Australia started their campaign by upsetting Turkey 2-0, handing the US's perceived toughest group rival a defeat [1, 2].
Earlier encounters between the teams add context to the matchup. Australia lost a physical friendly 2-1 to the US in Denver last October, when Christian Pulisic suffered an injury. Pulisic now faces a calf issue after being substituted at halftime against Paraguay and has been training separately. Despite this, Trewin expects Pulisic to play. "You want to play against their best 11," he said. "So, yeah, I'm sure he'll be fine" [1, 2].
The Australia-US World Cup group match will be closely watched with these MLS teammates facing off on opposite sides. The game follows Australia's 2-0 World Cup opener win on June 14 and the US's 4-1 victory two days later on June 15. Trewin first spoke about the matchup publicly on June 17 [1, 2].