When the United States faced Australia on Friday, it wasn't just a battle for first place in Group D with a spot in the knockout rounds at stake.
It was also a clash between three New York City FC players: Matt Freese, Aiden O'Neill, and Kai Trewin. With the United States winning 2-0 and qualifying for the Round of 32, Freese got the best of his Australian teammates in front of a raucous crowd in Seattle.
Freese and O'Neill went the full 90 minutes for their respective countries, becoming the first pair of active Major League Soccer teammates to start against one another in a World Cup game.
The NYCFC connections didn't stop there: Academy product Joe Scally made his World Cup debut when he came on for Sergiño Dest in the 80th minute, becoming the second-ever academy product, after Gio Reyna, to feature in the tournament.
Trewin is still looking to get his first minutes at the World Cup, but here's how Freese and O'Neill performed at Lumen Field on Friday.
First World Cup clean sheet for Freese
After making his World Cup debut in the 4-1 win over Paraguay, Freese recorded his first World Cup clean sheet against Australia, which was also the United States' first clean sheet in nine games since shutting out Japan 2-0 last September.
It was a relatively simple afternoon for Freese, who had to make just two saves. His first save came in the first minute and was a routine stop, but his next, which didn't come until the second half, was much more important.
With Australia growing into the game and looking more threatening, Freese dove low to keep out Connor Metcalfe's strike in the 66th minute and stop the momentum from growing further.
It's been a straightforward tournament so far for Freese with no mistakes made and without any real tests to speak of through two matches. If the United States is to make a run, he's going to have a game where he'll be called on to make several big saves.
With the win combined with Paraguay's victory over Türkiye, the United States has already won Group D, with a final group game on Thursday, June 25 at 10:00 pm ET against winless Türkiye in Los Angeles.
Struggles in the midfield for O'Neill
With the United States dominating possession, O'Neill had a tougher time in the midfield than he did when Australia beat Türkiye 2-0 in its opening game.
"There wasn't much time on the ball, especially in the first half," he said after the match. "Every time the ball came into me and Paul (Okon-Engstler), we didn't really have a second."
Totaling 55 touches, O'Neill completed 25 of his 38 passes, played seven passes into the final third, and went 0-for-5 on long-ball attempts. Defensively, O'Neill totaled five contributions, won 6-of-9 ground duels, had six recoveries, and recorded two clearances and interceptions while being fouled four times.
Australia is still in second place in Group D but next goes up against a Paraguay side that just beat Türkiye 1-0, meaning their third group match decides who finishes second and who has to take their chances among the third-place teams.
