USA captain Christian Pulisic was sent off early with a calf complaint as the World Cup hosts cruised to a 2-1 win. Australia at Dick's Sporting Goods Stadium in Colorado on Wednesday.
Striker Haji Wright's first-half brace canceled out Socceroos left-back Jordie Bos' shock opener, handing Tony Popovic his first defeat and denying Australia the chance to move up the FIFA rankings and potentially face an easier group at next year's tournament.
Pulisic, who returned to the starting line-up after an ankle injury kept him out as a substitute against Ecuador at the weekend, walked gingerly off the field in the 27th minute after several tough challenges from the physical Socceroos, who were clearly under orders to put the pressure on the Milan star.
Building on its recently improved performance, USA started the game with most of the ball and territory, moving the well-drilled Australia team around the field. And yet it was the guests who struck first.
Rising star Bos, who was recently voted Dutch Eredivisie player of the month, justified his starting spot in the 19th minute after his own throw-in near the US penalty area was cleared, allowing the Feyenoord defender to weave through three battling white jerseys before firing a half-volley into the far corner.
It was Australia's only bright attacking spark in the first half as the USA, like Canada on Saturday, controlled most of the ball and created more compelling chances as under-pressure coach Mauricio Pochettino continues to prepare his young team for next year's tournament.
Pulisic was the hosts' main source of attack and almost equalized in the next game, bursting into the Australian penalty area down the left-centre channel before his shot was saved.
But the captain's influence was cut short when Socceroos defender Jason Jeria was shown a yellow card and he fell to the grass clutching his shin, forcing Pochettino to replace his star player prematurely.
His replacement, Diego Luna, provided the spark the U.S. needed to score minutes later. As he occupied Australia's central players, midfielder Cristian Roldan shot through and found striker Haji Wright, who fired the ball into the top corner to make it 1-1.
From this point on, the hosts grew in confidence and controlled the game, pushing further into Australia's final third and finding more pockets around the box. Towards the end of the half, Wright and Rodan attempted to fly over the crossbar, but not before tensions flared after James Sands was repeatedly attacked by some frustrated Socceroos.
Nick D'Agostino, who spent half the time chasing shadows, charged into action while Aiden O'Neill's tackle left Sands prone, leading to a brawl between the two teams around the center referee, who ended the half early to calm things down.
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Australia started the second half brightly with Bose again breaking down the left flank before parrying O'Neill, who lingered too long on his shot which eventually deflected off the white shirt. A rare free kick for the Australians just outside the penalty area ricocheted off the hosts' defensive wall, and for some delay, US goalkeeper Matt Freese was almost punished with a lightning-quick strike from D'Agostino.
But the Socceroos' momentum stalled minutes later after a quick USA free-kick sailed across the field and into the stride of Wright, who cut neatly into the scrambling Cam Burgess and fired past Mat Ryan.
Popovich, sticking to his pre-match commitment to rotate players, made four changes in the space of an hour to freshen up Australia's attack, bringing on Mo Toure and Nestori Irancundo for D'Agostino and Martin Boyle.
But it was Bos who continued to shine, zipping through channels left and right as he tried to push his luck. In the 75th minute, it was almost a success before the ball got stuck at his feet, and at the other end Ryan made a fine save to prevent a one-on-one with Luna, who slid through the Australian backline.
A heavy aerial collision between Bos and Alex Freeman in the 80th minute, followed by an incident with Balogun losing the ball, spoiled the game. But Iracunda needed one more chance and made a final attack to try and level the score, but his tame kick was picked up by Freeze.
The USA managed to see out the rest of the match and secure their first win in some time, handing Popovich his first defeat as Socceroos coach and denying Australia the opportunity to potentially qualify for an easier group at next year's World Cup.
