USA head coach Gregg Berhalter ripped a page right out the Ange Postecoglou Celtic playbook when it came to Cameron Carter-Vickers' involvement in a crucial Qatar 2022 win over Iran.
The Hoops defender was handed his first start at the World Cup on the biggest of stages for his country, needing a win to ensure progress to the last 16. They achieved a 1-0 win thanks to Christian Pulisic's goal and it sets up a knockout tie with Netherlands later this week, with Berhalter's Carter-Vickers inclusion raising eyebrows.
He replaced Walker Zimmerman after a 0-0 shutout against England but the American manager insists the Celtic defender's experience with playing against low blocks in Scotland – like the one Iran put up – was key to his inclusion. Berhalter explained: "It is difficult after getting a shutout against England to take Walker out, and it was a difficult conversation with Walker.
"And then the rationale was that Cam does this. We expected Iran to be in a low block and Cam does this every single week with Celtic.
"We thought that was just a very logical decision. He’s used to defending space behind, he’s also used to building up against a compact defence.
"So to me, that was a good fit and he played really well. You see how resilient this group is, you see how unified this group is, you see what type of energy and output they put into every single game, and then along the way there’s some pretty good soccer."
