Antonee Robinson screamer not enough to spare USA defeat against Germany ahead of World Cup
Antonee Robinson’s stunning volley was not enough to spare the United States defeat ahead of their home World Cup campaign as they were beaten by Germany.
Leroy Sane scored the decisive goal in a 2-1 victory to extend Germany’s impressive run to a nine-game winning streak heading into the tournament finals.
Kai Havertz had put the four-time champions ahead with a header from a free-kick in the second minute.
However, Antonee Robinson levelled in the 37th minute with a spellbinding left-foot volley, catching the ball the top of the arc and rocketing into the roof of the net following Christian Pulisic’s corner kick.
Sane’s second-half winner came off a short pass from Havertz, firing a diagonal shot between the legs of Miles Robinson that appeared to take a slight deflection off the defender and beat goalkeeper Matt Freese to the far post.
The 16th-ranked United States have now lost nine straight games to European opponents dating to 2022.
Hosting the World Cup for the first time since 1994, the Americans open against Paraguay on Friday, then play Australia and Turkey. The US had not lost its last match heading into a World Cup since 2002.
Germany start their World Cup campaign against Curacao on 14 June, in a group that also includes Ivory Coast and Ecuador.
The match drew a sellout crowd of 63,636 to Soldier Field, the site of the 1994 World Cup opener. Chicago refused to bid to host 2026 World Cup matches, citing what it said was a lack of financial assurances by Fifa.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side played without top defender Chris Richards, sidelined since tearing a pair of left ankle ligaments on 17 May. Germany were meanwhile missing 18-year-old midfielder Lennart Karl, ruled out for the World Cup after injuring a thigh in training.
