heyOn May 28, 2016, Christian Pulisic became the youngest player to score for the U.S. men’s national team, netting in a 4–0 win over Bolivia for the Copa América Centenario. But what happened last night was, in a quieter way, no less remarkable.
Then-US head coach Jurgen Klinsmann allowed Pulisic to attend his high school prom in Hershey, Pennsylvania the night before the match, and the 17-year-old player chartered a private plane so he could get back to Kansas City on time. for the game.
It was the unusually normality of her teenage years: the tension between being a shy kid, a Justin Bieber fan, who wanted to hang out with friends in a chocolate company town often called the sweetest place on Earth, and the reality of her working life. International star who traveled by executive jet to Germany, where he lived, before he was old enough to travel alone. A universal rite of passage in his high school and a unique achievement for his country in the span of 24 hours.
The forward scored his first Bundesliga goal for Borussia Dortmund a few weeks ago and the Copa will be his first major tournament. In 2017 US Soccer published a website story called All the Things Christian Pulisic Did Faster Than Anyone – and it wasn’t a quick read. So soon, yet not enough: His $73 million move to Chelsea in 2019 went sour despite the club’s 2021 Champions League win. After the US failed to reach the 2018 World Cup, Pulisic broke into tears.
No wonder there were times when he seemed a little uneasy, like a young man seeking footing in a whirlpool. The pressure of being the brightest gem of America’s golden generation even landed him on a therapist’s couch – at least in one car commercial that played on his growing pains.
Now after thriving at Milan and having a career-best club season, Pulisic looks confident in a leadership role for his country, which includes wearing the armband and seizing the moment, as he did in another against Bolivia on Sunday. Did it in the match. If there is still a weight on his shoulders, he is not bent by it. Maturity has not made him cautious or conservative; He still attacks with the fierce courage he showed as a young man.
In the third minute of the Copa America 2024 Group C opener at home to the Dallas Cowboys, Pulisic collected the ball on the edge of the box and fired a high diagonal shot past goalkeeper Guillermo Viscarra, who was also between the posts. That impressive game in 2016.
The US needed it all against the weakest South American team in this tournament, and that means an addendum to the sharper list than anyone. it’s police Fastest USMNT player to reach 30 goals, doing so on his 69th cap, reaching the mark 14 games earlier than Eric Winalda and 18 games earlier than Landon Donovan. His ability made him famous; His production is only increasing his fame. In Hollywood they would say he has charisma: a star quality that sets him apart.
“It was an outstanding performance,” US head coach Greg Berhalter said after the game. “He’s a selfless leader, he goes out and competes and works really hard and that helps the team and you add the fact that he’s highly skilled and can play on the offensive end and it’s A great combination.”
Pulisic was named man of the match, although he prefers to emphasize collective effort as part of his leadership strategy. After scoring from a choreographed move with Timothy Weah, Pulisic gestured dramatically into the crowd to give credit to set-piece coach Gianni Vio. Pulisic had also scored a goal from a direct free kick in the previous game, a 1–1 friendly match with Brazil, after committing a foul by sprinting to the edge of the penalty area.
In that game and on Sunday, it seemed as if he stepped onto the field with an agenda in mind – to define an aggressive, fearless tone from the first whistle.
For all the talk by US Soccer in its head coach search last year about a “multidimensional evaluation mechanism” with “advanced data analytics, sophisticated metrics and cutting-edge recruiting methods to profile and rank each candidate,” it is hard to believe Berhalter. He would have been reassigned after the World Cup had Pulisic not publicly supported him. He is the most influential player, the face of the team and, although he is only 25 years old, he is the most capped player in this Copa squad.
The early lead allayed any American tension. Folarin Balogun, clear on the left after being set up by Pulisic, scored the second goal into the far corner shortly before half-time – an assured finish and confidence boost for the forward, who had not scored for the U.S. in days. october. Tyler Adams, recently returned from injury, started for the first time since March and played 45 minutes. This aggressive midfielder captained America in Qatar. His continued absence has been a factor in Pulisic becoming a more vocal presence in place of Adams.
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Substitute striker Ricardo Pepi was ineffective in the second half and America’s passing was somewhat careless. La Paz is more than twice as high as Denver, but despite that home advantage Bolivia are ranked 84th in the world by FIFA, making them by far the weakest of CONMEBOL’s 10 nations. They have not won a competitive game on the road since the 2015 Copa América in Chile.
The two-goal difference was probably the minimum required. Nevertheless, Berhalter was satisfied. “The game was never in doubt and I think it’s a good starting point to move forward in this tournament,” the coach said. He praised the standard of the temporary grass field, which will be a relief for organizers after criticism of the surface in Atlanta, the other World Cup 2026 semi-final venue.
That will be followed by a clash with a familiar and manageable CONCACAF foe in Panama on Thursday, then a jump in quality against one of the tournament favorites, Uruguay, on July 1. On Sunday, Uruguay defeated Panama 3-1. Brazil or Colombia, who beat the U.S. 5-1 in a warm-up earlier this month, probably await the Americans to reach the quarterfinals.
Whether failing to beat teams of the caliber of Colombia or Brazil will be a punishable offense for Berhalter is a matter of conjecture that may prove to be the central narrative emerging in the coming weeks, especially since there has been little controversy surrounding his selection. Is. There’s a pretty settled lineup.
In some ways, although it is now a team dominated by European-based players, the debate over the program’s identity is still going on from the dog days of the MLS-dependent Klinsmann era. How to marry old-fashioned American virtues – irascible, hungry, sometimes outmatched but never outmatched – with the progressive ambition to play and win with style and sophistication? And can the U.S. incorporate those qualities under Berhalter against tough competition like Uruguay, Brazil or Colombia?
“We’re as talented as we are, we’re as intense as we are,” goalkeeper Matt Turner told reporters before the Bolivia game. In Pulisic the Americans have an aggressive and talented individual who will certainly be essential if Berhalter’s team is to succeed in more difficult games. Eight years after his Copa debut, when he was a dazzling debutant among the giants, can he lift his teammates up to his level?
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