USA will face the Netherlands in the last 16 of the World Cup after Christian Pulisic fired them to victory against Iran on Tuesday night, moving them up to second in Group B.
Pulisic scored the only goal of the game as he bundled in Sergino Dest's header just seven minutes before half-time, and Iran failed to find a response. With England expected to beat Wales in their final group game, the USMNT knew that a win was essential, and they got it.
USA finished on an impressive five points after drawing against both Wales and England, and they also conceded the fewest goals in Group B. Only Gareth Bale's penalty has got past them so far, but they're expected to face more of an attacking threat against Group A winners Netherlands.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Netherlands cruised to a 2-0 victory against World Cup hosts Qatar, and topped the group after Ecuador lost 2-1 to Senegal in their final group game. With the Netherlands topping the group on seven points, they will face USA at Khalifa International Stadium on Saturday at 3pm.
If Wales had caused an almighty upset and beaten England, it would have been Senegal up next for USA. That clash would have taken place at the Al Bayt Stadium on Sunday, December 4 with a 7pm kick-off.
However, England didn't let their neighbours claim a famous win, and instead ran out 3-0 winners as Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden found the net in the second half. They will also receive an extra day of rest than USA, as reward for finishing top in Group B.
Looking even further ahead down USA's potential route through the knockout stages, if they can beat the Netherlands then it would likely be either Argentina or Denmark awaiting in the quarter-finals, although it's not exactly been a straight forward group stage for either side.
Argentina were stunned by Saudi Arabia in their group opener as they lost 2-1, but turned things around with a 2-0 win against Mexico. Argentina will realistically need to beat Poland to finish top, but that group is still all up for grabs. Denmark face a tough test against Australia and must win to stand a chance of qualifying, while hoping that France beat Tunisia in the process to make things easier.
It's a disappointing exit for both Iran and Wales from Group B, with both sides missing key opportunities against their opposition. Iran needed to avoid defeat against the USA to progress, but couldn't fight back after going 1-0 down. Wales' first tournament in 64 years started well as they picked up a point against the USA, but the two last-minute goals they conceded against Iran all but ended their hopes.
