Player ratings: Pulisic 3/10 in USMNT’s loss to Portugal

The United States men’s national team lost 2-0 to Portugal in a friendly match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Tuesday.

After a competitive start to the match for both teams, the visitors finally took the lead in the 37th minute when Francisco Trincão fired a shot past American goalkeeper Matt Freese. In response, the United States continued to apply offensive pressure, but ultimately failed to capitalize on any of its mid-point opportunities.

After half-time, Portugal doubled their lead. In the 59th minute, João Félix struck a perfectly timed ball from outside the box that made the score 2-0 in their favor. Portugal grew in confidence after several substitutions in the second half, and although they failed to find the back of the net again, their efforts were enough to make it 2-0 at the final whistle.

American coach Mauricio Pochettino and his team will now begin final preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup this summer. Pochettino is expected to announce his squad for the tournament in May.

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Manager rating out of 10

Mauricio Pochettino, 5 years old — Glass Half Full: The United States were dynamic after making six changes from their previous eleven and creating several chances in the final third. Glass Half Empty: The decision to start Christian Pulisic as a striker turned out to be the wrong one, and despite their poor performance, the team was not as effective as they should have been in attack.

There were brief moments of magic for the USMNT who enjoyed an exciting start to the friendly, but it was also a strange time for Pochettino to experiment in the final game before selecting his World Cup roster.

Player Ratings (0-10; 10 = best, 5 = average)

GK Matt Freese, 6 years old — There was little he could do to stop Portugal’s two goals, but he allowed those shots to go in nonetheless. An early save on an attempt from Bruno Fernandes, and the refusal of a powerful shot from Nuno Mendes in the second half, will remain among his highlights.

DF Antonée Robinson, 6 years old — Not bad defensively, he looked dangerous up front and also threw a thunderous shot from distance. He wasn’t as involved as in his previous match, but he still highlighted why he’s starting for the United States.

DF Auston Faithful, 5 years old — It’s the first time I’ve played alongside Chris Richards in the heart of defense, and it showed first. His positioning was suspect early on and he could have done better with Portugal’s opening goal, but he notably made defensive improvements in the second half.

DF Chris Richards, 6 years old — After the captain made an early error with a poorly timed pass, he quickly stepped in with a strong presence in the backline. It was no more than a perfect 90 minutes, but his interventions helped limit the opponents to just two goals.

DF Alex Freeman, 7 years old – The youngest member of the XI may have just cemented his place in the starting list. Freeman made some superb runs forward, made eye-catching tackles and dribbled the ball with ease in the final third.

MF Sebastian Berhalter, 5 — A decent overall match for the midfielder, who sometimes struggled to keep up with Portugal’s pace. A shot from distance highlighted his early confidence, as did some forward passes.

Mr. F. Aidan Morris, 4 years old — Morris left space open for Portugal to score their first goal and notably dropped back when he could have stopped Trincao. His tackles and distributions looked better as the game went on, but the mistake was major for the USMNT.

AM Timothy Weah, 5 years old — Weah was sometimes involved in pressing the opposition, but it was clear that more was expected of the winger, who had to be proactive. Won only one of his five duels.

AM Malik Tillman, 7 years old — A promising evening for the young player. He was very active with his key passes, his creation of chances and his intelligent movements with the ball. The energetic starter was arguably the best American on the field.

AM Weston McKennie, 5 years old — Connected well with the front line and won a crucial foul in a dangerous area. At times he remained silent in the first 45 minutes, but that wasn’t enough to lower his status as a key figure on the USMNT.

FW Christian Pulisic, 3 — Underlined by his frustration which led to an unnecessary yellow card, it was an off night for the striker, who had some questionable decision-making as a striker. Even though it wasn’t his natural position, he failed to capitalize on his chances.

Substitutes (players introduced after 70 minutes receive no rating)

FW Patrick Agyemang, 7 years old — A better focal point at the striker position than Pulisic. Helped win the ball back and made some eye-catching passes in the final third.

DF Max Arfsten, 5 — His passing could have been better down the left flank, and it’s hard to argue he’s a better option than Robinson at left back.

MF Tanneur Tessmann, 5 years old — Not bad with the ball, even if we expected more from him defensively.

DF Joe Scally, 4 years old — Didn’t make much of an impact during his limited time on the field.

FW Folarin Balogun, 5 — Like Scally, he didn’t have much time to leave his mark on the game, but he provided some good passes and runs.

MC Cristian Roldan, N/A — Substituted in the 79th minute.

AM Gio Reyna, N/A — Substituted in the 79th minute.

AM Brenden Aaronson, N/A — Substituted in the 79th minute.

DF Mark McKenzie, N/A — Substituted in the 91st minute.