USMNT fall 2-0 to Portugal in final game before World Cup roster is named | USA

The United States men’s national team met Portugal at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Tuesday night, having spent the days leading up to the match preaching intensity. After a 5-2 defeat to Belgium this weekend, players and coaches stressed the importance of showing well against Portugal, sixth in the FIFA world rankings.

Instead, the United States closed that window with another flat performance, undone by a talented Portuguese team that easily broke the United States in front of a packed house of 72,297. The 2-0 loss was the USMNT’s eighth straight loss to a European opponent, a stretch that saw them beat 22-6.

As expected, American head coach Mauricio Pochettino made a series of changes to the team that faced Belgium on Saturday. New England Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner has been replaced by NYC FC goalkeeper Matt Freese, Pochettino’s preferred choice over the past year. In central defense, Chris Richards and Auston Trusty partnered for the first time, replacing Tim Ream and Mark McKenzie, flanked by right-back Alex Freeman and Antonee Robinson on the left. Sebastian Berhalter and Aidan Morris were favored over Tanner Tessmann and Johnny Cardoso in midfield. And perhaps most interestingly, Christian Pulisic spent much of the match as a central striker, with Tim Weah, Weston McKennie and Malik Tillman in support.

For a time, Pochettino’s choices proved quite useful, but the United States eventually collapsed, undone by a 37th-minute goal from Sporting winger Francisco Trincão and a fine, perfectly placed effort from former Atlético Madrid striker João Félix a quarter of an hour into the second half.

They never completely folded like they did against Belgium, but Tuesday night’s performance probably didn’t inspire hope in the hearts of American fans as they prepare for a home World Cup in just over two months.

Pulisic frustrations overflow

Pulisic is usually far from the most visibly expressive player on the pitch. But with each of his misses on Tuesday, the American midfielder became more and more openly frustrated. No one could blame him.

There was his miss in the sixth minute, a low, poorly struck effort off an excellent ball from Tillman. Fifteen minutes later, an even better chance presented itself on a well-worked sequence from the United States, but Pulisic failed to even make contact with an attempted volley from the edge of the penalty area. His 35th-minute effort was much better, but only caused more heartburn when he skidded inches from the post. In the 41st minute, his frustrations over a missed call resulted in an unnecessary tackle on Vitinha in the center circle, earning him a warning from the referee. By the time Pulisic was knocked off the ball in the 45th minute, he had seen enough. He lashed out in frustration at Portuguese midfielder Samu Costa, earning him a yellow card. Pochettino replaced him at half-time.

Pulisic remains a key player for Milan but is stuck in a run of poor club form, having failed to find the back of the net this calendar year. Many had hoped that this international window might have improved his form, but by all accounts it did nothing of the sort. It seems a bit harsh to suggest that the American midfielder, who played with the type of intensity that Pochettino has been preaching all week, had a terrible game. It seems more accurate to say that he looks nothing like the player American fans have become accustomed to. Aside from his near miss, none of his chances were taken with confidence.

Perhaps the perfect summation of his evening came just before halftime, when he galloped about 30 yards down the middle of the field, electrifying the American fans, many of whom probably expected him to end his run with an attempt on goal. Instead, Pulisic held the ball too long, eventually attempting to connect with McKennie.

It’s far too early to start talking about the ‘Pulisic of old’, but this player, for all his confidence, feels much more likely to have found the equalizer in this sequence, or at least attempted to do so. PM

A familiar opener

One might get a sense of déjà vu watching Portugal’s opening goal against the United States – the circumstances and timing of that game overlapped perfectly with Belgium’s equalizer on Saturday. Like that goal, Trincão’s goal came near the end of a first half that the United States would have otherwise been quite proud of. And like Saturday, the goal came just moments after Pulisic missed a golden opportunity to put the United States ahead.

Much like Saturday, the United States let this opening concession be a harbinger of things to come. The second halves of both matches against Belgium and Portugal saw the United States withdraw into themselves, with a lack of possession perhaps partly due to the large number of substitutes in the second half, with both teams agreeing on a maximum of 11.

The sheer manner of Portugal’s opening match will worry the United States, however. A period of this sloppy possession ended when Alex Freeman had the ball knocked away on a scoreless run inside the halfway line. Weston McKennie, in an effort to clean up the mess, played the ball backwards and directly into the path of Vitinha. The PSG player didn’t need much time to look up and find Bruno Fernandes already running into space, ready to play a backheel to the backline which was easily completed by Trincão.

It was a study in two sides: one clinical and unforgiving, the other still finding its feet. AA

An emerging and unwanted danger zone

Most teams direct their chance creation towards the heart of the box, ideally away from the zone of influence of the goalkeeper and defense. Belgium and Portugal enjoyed themselves a little further out, finding plenty of open space at the edge of the US penalty area – both to extend set-piece danger windows and during the flow of play.

If you’re reading this and thinking, “Isn’t this where defensive midfielders are supposed to do their best?” », you would be right! There is no doubt that Tyler Adams has been greatly missed as the best midfielder in the pool, if not in program history. That said, Pochettino has signed a few players – Tessman, Morris and Roldan – who play in defensive midfield for their clubs. This is not a group unaware of role expectations.

In Portugal’s opener, Morris was slow to get back and found himself just behind the play as Trincão stepped on Bruno’s backheel. The visitors doubled the lead a little more directly, luring a normal corner before Bruno threw it to João Félix on the edge of the area. Morris was slow to recover the ball, Félix had a surprising amount of time to settle the lob and set up his shot after a high bounce on the installed grass surface, and the United States lost 2-0 in 70 minutes.

Since his international debut in 2017, Adams has become a key figure for the United States. In a pool of players offering versatility, his unwavering commitment to tough yards is unprecedented in this program. Having him 100% fit has proven to be a real trick, but it’s a mandatory part of getting this team to be at their best. Without him, the United States discovers that the seemingly small danger seems as dangerous as any other. J.R.