The US men's national team's latest international window proved to be a disaster for manager Mauricio Pochettino's squad. Two heavy defeats (5-2 to Belgium and 2-0 to Portugal), further injury concerns (Johnny Cardoso and Auston Trusty) and widespread frustration amongst supporters.

To compound matters, Pochettino was unable to field his strongest starting line-up due to the absence of Tyler Adams, Sergino Dest, and Chris Richards, who returned for the Portugal fixture (sporting a worrying-looking knee brace). With the Donald Trump-focused World Cup fewer than 100 days away, the Argentine may be rapidly running out of time to settle on his strongest side.

Notably, Pochettino had all of his goalkeeping options at his disposal, including first-choice Matt Freese. Yet this did not prevent the Argentine from selecting former No. 1 Matt Turner - who hadn't featured for the USMNT in 15 matches - against Belgium. Despite producing several impressive saves, he conceded five goals in the World Cup warm-up.

Former USMNT No. 1 Brad Friedel, who represented the United States at three World Cups, admitted he was "Surprised that Turner plays." The seasoned Premier League goalkeeper took issue with the selection, though he suggested Pochettino made the call in order to create the impression that the number one position remained up for grabs.

Speaking with Express Sport via Gambling.com, the best place to find UK Online Casinos, Friedel set out his thinking. "I've known Mauricio for a long time....he is very, very smart," Freidel said. "There's no way he's going to position himself to name a team right now. Mauricio will want competition until the last second.

"I was surprised that Freese didn't play, because I just thought with four games before the World Cup [you start him each time]. But I also, you know, I understand giving one more game to Matt [Turner], and if he performed incredibly, you have a great competition on your hand." Friedel spoke at length on the All Out Soccer podcast.

Turner produced a handful of impressive saves against Portugal, though he was left largely helpless on both goals: Francisco Trincao was unmarked after defenders chased Bruno Fernandes on the first, while Joao Felix had an entire NFL field worth of space on the second. Both crept in just around the post.

"I'm not too concerned with that," Freese said of the US's starting position. not too concerned with that," Freese said of the US's starting position. "I'm focused on being there for the team and helping the team in any capacity that's required.

Friedel is well acquainted with Freese, having managed him with the US under-19s. "I started Matt freezes national team existence," he said. "He's a unit physical, physically Excellent.

"He's improved dramatically over the years with his feet." Five goals alone failed to truly capture the extent of Turner's nightmare, though he could certainly have dealt with the opening strike from Belgian Zeno Debast more effectively. "It was just a very unfortunate day for him," Friedel said.

It appears highly improbable that Turner will be handed a starting berth for the US at the World Cup. With Freese - a 27-year-old who has never featured in a major tournament or a European league - lacking sufficient familiarity with the defenders ahead of him, would an additional 90 minutes not have been a sensible decision?