Pulisic returns to training as Balogun eyes Golden Boot and 'Country Roads'

Even with a place in the knockout rounds secured, the USMNT still face selection questions before their final group game against Turkey: Christian Pulisic’s fitness, squad rotation for a largely meaningless match, and the surprising origin of the Seattle crowd’s “Country Roads” singalong.

Folarin Balogun sits squarely in the Golden Boot conversation after two games and admits watching stars such as Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland can be “annoying,” though he appreciates their quality. He’s proud of his form but recognises the risk of playing while on a yellow card, saying he wants to play every game because “the most important thing for a professional athlete in any sport is to be available,” and he doesn’t want to pick up a booking that would rule him out of the Round of 32.

The emergence of “Take Me Home, Country Roads” as a postgame anthem was planned. FIFA asked teams to submit playlists and U.S.

United States, Seattle

christian pulisic, folarin balogun, golden boot, country roads, postgame anthem, yellow card, knockout rounds, squad rotation, fifa, lionel messi