By OkayGoal 
The U.S. men’s national team received some help from Paraguay in clinching top spot in Group D at the FIFA World Cup.
Paraguay’s 1-0 win over Turkey on Friday night sealed Mauricio Pochettino’s squad first place with one match to spare. Matias Galarza’s lone goal 65 seconds into the match in San Francisco was all Gustavo Alfaro’s squad needed to claim three points.
Paraguay will next face Australia on June 25, with second place in the group up for grabs.
The Paraguayans were reduced to 10 men before halftime as star midfielder Miguel Almiron was sent off for violating a new rule banning players from covering their mouths during a confrontation. Almiron was given a straight red card, putting his team in a tough spot for the remainder of the match.
Despite being up one man and outshooting Paraguay 32-to-7 in the match, Turkey were unable to find the back of the net, suffering elimination after just two matches.
The USMNT entered the night knowing a Paraguay win or draw would seal them top spot heading into their showdown with Turkey in Los Angeles on June 25. An own goal from Australia’s Cam Burgess paired with Alex Freeman’s first-career World Cup goal clinched a 2-0 home win for the USMNT over the Socceroos earlier in the day, moving the Americans to 2-0-0 in group stage play this summer.
Pochettino may be forced to rest several of his key starters against Turkey, knowing they cannot move up or down following the result. Chris Richards, Tim Ream, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, and Folarin Balogun are among those that could see a break while star attacker Christian Pulisic may see some minutes after missing the Australia match with a calf issue.
Following Friday’s pair of Group D results, the USMNT’s pathway for the knockout stage has started to take shape. The USMNT will face Turkey in their group stage finale on Thursday before taking on a third-place finisher from either Groups B, E, F, I or J in a Round of 32 matchup on July 1 in Santa Clara.
Should the Americans advance to the Round of 16, they will return to Seattle for a July 6 matchup against the winner of a match between the Group G winner or a third-place team from Groups A, E, H, I, or J.
Los Angeles would play host to the USMNT’s quarterfinal matchup on July 10 before the scene shifts to Arlington, Texas for the semifinal round on July 14. New York/New Jersey Stadium has already been chosen as the host of the FIFA World Cup Final on July 19, while the third-place match would take place one day earlier in Miami.