‘He made the right choice’ — Fans concede as striker who snubbed Nigeria for USA breaks 96-year-old World Cup record

Nigerian-born ex-Arsenal star Folarin Balogun was the star of the show as hosts USA opened their World Cup account with a dominant win over Paraguay.

The 2026 World Cup hosts wasted little time in stamping their authority on the tournament with a dominant 4-1 win over Paraguay in their opening game in Group D.

Former Super Eagles of Nigeria target Folarin Balogun became the first American player to score a brace in 96 years, as his two goals combined with a further strike from Gio Reyna and an own goal from Damian Bobadilla helped ease the pressure on the USMNT with an opening day victory.

Balogun’s brace was the first time that a USMNT player scored multiple goals in the same World Cup match since Bert Patenaude scored a hat-trick against Paraguay in the maiden edition in 1930.

The Monaco forward found his first in the 31st minute following brilliant playmaking from Christian Pulisic, before striking again in first-half stoppage time into the top corner.

Although Paraguay pulled one back via Maurício in the second half, the game belonged entirely to Balogun.

After the match, Balogun was heavily hailed by fans for making the difficult choice of picking the USA over his other options. The striker was born in New York but lived there for only one month before moving to England, where he grew up, while also holding close ties to Nigeria through his ancestry.

Social media erupted with praise for his decision, with one fan noting: “Folarin Balogun chose England over Nigeria, then chose USA over England. Currently has 2 goals at the World Cup. The most chaotic career path in football history is working out just fine.”

Another supporter added, “Balogun declaring for USA might be one of the smartest career moves, he’s gonna eat off this game for decades over there.”

Many pointed out that breaking into the star-studded English frontline would have been incredibly difficult, whereas Nigeria unfortunately, failed to qualify for their second consecutive World Cup. "He was never going to lead the line for either nation. It was a good decision to settle for the US," a fan concluded.

With three points secured, the USA will now look to maintain their spot at the top of Group D as they prepare to play against Australia before taking on Turkey in their final group fixture.