Via Laken Litman
FOX Sports Soccer Writer
CINCINNATI – Facts United States men’s national team will attend the World Cup in November, so now all coach Gregg Berhalter has to do is figure out who he will bring to Qatar.
On Wednesday, USMNT beat fellow World Cup winner Morocco 3-0 at TQL Stadium. It was a good performance by the US, the team controlled the game and created some chances against a solid defence.
And it was the first game of an exciting period in June that included playing against another World Cup team, Uruguayon Sunday in Kansas City, followed by two Nations League games against Grenada on June 10 in Austin and a road game against El Salvador on June 14.
While these matches have fairly low odds and aren’t against the top teams in the world, they’re still an opportunity for Berhalter to continue testing and tweaking his roster for a good look. about players trying to come up with a 23-man squad (although FIFA could expand the squad size to 26 players sometime before November).
These matches are also a chance for players to prove themselves – and many did so on Wednesday, including Aaron Longwho started in the midfield position, Reggie Cannonwho played the full 90 minutes at right-back, and Jesus Ferreira, who had some good scoring opportunities to the top. Berhalter made many pre-planned replacements, including the Joe Scally, Haji Wright and Malik Tillman in-game to earn their first USMNT.
This month is also an important time for the team to continue to build close friendships as the players do not see each other very often.
“We’re gathering together as a group, which is obviously huge,” the guard DeAndre Yedlin said earlier this week. “There’s a lot of things people don’t understand about the national team that you’re gathering together for about 10 days, so it’s very difficult to build that chemistry. So whenever you have the chance meeting to meet, which is tremendous.
“It’s the main thing just to keep building together, to continue to bring this group of players together, and the longer we’re together, the stronger we’ll be in November.”
With that, here are three thoughts from Wednesday’s game.
Pulisic shows altruism, leadership ability
Christian Pulisic may have been unhappy with the fan turnout in Cincinnati – he called fans out on the post-game broadcast, telling ESPN that he was “particularly unhappy with the amount of Americans” here tonight, if I’m being completely honest” – but he can be sure to be pleased with his own performance.
Everyone was talking about Pulisic’s talent, dexterity and ball control. And all of that was shown against Morocco.
At the 26th minute, Walker Zimmerman launched a long ball down the pitch that Pulisic had perfect control of before cutting the ball back, fooling two defenders and passing the ball into a streak. Brenden Aaronsonwho took the shot with his left foot.
“It was amazing,” said Aaronson, who was not on the same team as the previous camp, as the team qualified for the World Cup. “For him is to forget himself like he is and give me the ball and score, that’s amazing.”
Pulisic could have taken the shot himself, but he said he thought a Moroccan defender was close and could bite if he cut back. When asked how difficult the first touch is, Pulisic simply explained that he’s been doing it forever.
“I’ve been training like that all my life,” he said. “So for me, it’s a touch that I expect myself to take.”
It may be, but his ability to contact and control the ball at such high speeds is “what separates really good players from great players,” says Berhalter.
Then Pulisic was fouled in the box and fouled. While it looked like he would take the penalty kick, he played the decoy and gave the ball to Wright, his former teammate at the 2015 U17 World Cup. Wright scored the winning goal in his first national team cap.
“I think he had a really strong performance, but it was more than the action on the pitch,” Berhalter said of Pulisic. “It was the intensity in the warm-up he showed, the selflessness he gave Haji the penalty in that moment and didn’t need the limelight, didn’t need to score and wanted to put his teammates in. a great location.
“And that’s Christian. When you have leaders like that, you’re lucky.”
Chemical development at the center
On May 7, Atlanta United captain Miles Robinson broke his Achilles in a duel with Chicago Fire. While he looked like a key to starting the USMNT in the World Cup, his trip to Qatar could now be a no-go.
Who to replace Robinson will be an important decision for Berhalter. On Wednesday, he was accompanied by Long, who had his first game for the USMNT since March 2021. Long actually broke his Achilles about a year ago and was only back in the March window. , appeared twice as substitutes in the Americans’ 0-0 draw at Mexico and won 5-1 Panama. Long played the full 90 minutes on Wednesday, the first half with Zimmerman and the second with Cameron Carter-Vickers.
Zimmerman said: “I’m really glad he’s made a successful comeback. “It’s been a short time, and I’m proud of him for everything he’s done up to this point. I think he’s very solid. I’m always happy to play with him because I know him. that he will [compete] on every challenge.
“I’m surprised we keep our voices down because we’re always yelling at each other.”
Communication is extremely important in that position, and it’s an added benefit that Zimmerman and Long have a good rapport and click very quickly.
“We played a lot of games together,” Zimmerman said. “We have a very close group, and especially at centre-back, it’s great that you guys have that friendship off the pitch. It makes playing with him all the more special. want to make each other look better, and we want to make each other have good performances.”
Turner bets on goal
The US goalkeeper situation is a bit unstable at the moment. Last week, Zack Steffen withdrew from camp for family reasons, which gave Turner the opportunity to begin targeting Wednesday.
Matt Turnerwho debuted USMNT last July, got the nod Sean Johnsonwho was called to replace Steffen on this training camp roster, and Ethan Horvathwho was not dressed for the game.
Turner missed the March window due to a leg injury – Steffen started those games – but on Wednesday said he is feeling good.
“Very strong, very solid,” Zimmerman said of Turner’s performance. “He’s been back from a foot injury for a while, so he’s only got about five games in New England, but he’s got his composure back there.
“I know he wants to get a few balls back and try to keep the ball a little bit more while we’re building, but I think in terms of his blocking, the cleanliness, he’s got it. some really good touches. Some difficult tackles were played back for him. So it was a great performance to carry on.”
Turner, who says he has no pain in his leg, is yet to know if Berhalter will feature in Sunday’s game against Uruguay.
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball, and soccer for FOX Sports. She has previously competed in college football, college basketball, the United States women’s national soccer team, and the Olympics at Sports Illustrated, USA Today, and The Indianapolis Star. Her first book, written in partnership with Rizzoli and Sports Illustrated and titled “Strong Like a Woman,” was published in spring 2022, marking the 50th anniversary of Title IX.
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Soccer – Friendly – USA vs Morocco – 6/1/2022
