It was a fine all-around performance for the U.S. on Friday night
3 min read
The United States men’s national team put together its most impressive performance under Gregg Berhalter on Friday night, controlling Mexico to win their critical World Cup qualifier, 2-0. In what was their third win over El Tri this calendar year, goals from Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie in the second half led the way while Zack Steffen made a pair of sharp saves in goal. The win puts the team in first place in the Concacaf qualifying heading into Tuesday’s match away at Jamaica (on Paramount+)
The U.S. out-shot Mexico 18-8 in the end and had very little trouble in the second half, essentially cruising to the victory in the final moments.
But how did each player perform? Here’s a look at our ratings:
Player ratings
|
(GK) Zack Steffen |
90 | Made a really strong save on Edson Alvarez early on and an even better one on Chucky Lozano in the second half. Did everything he needed to do. |
7.5 |
|
(DEF) Antonee Robinson |
90 | Passing was quite poor, especially centrally. Also committed some silly fouls. Had some decent moments going forward but was far from consistent. |
5 |
|
(DEF) Miles Robinson |
89 | Very encouraging. Always confident and always went in strong. Was the heart of that backline and didn’t let anything past him. Picked up a red card late, but the game was over at 2-0. |
7 |
|
(DEF) Walker Zimmerman |
90 | Incredibly determined and showed as much effort and heart as anybody. Did so well on Raul Jimenez one-on-one in the first half and was quick to react in every situation. | 6.5 |
|
(DEF) DeAndre Yedlin |
90 | Delivered some solid balls in and got deep down the line to try and cause trouble. His passing was exceptional at 85.4 percent and really didn’t have much to worry about defensively in the second half. | 6 |
|
(MID) Tyler Adams |
90 | Not great on the ball, but he was a lion defensively. Improved with the ball as the match went on and created a couple chances. The undisputed captain of this team. | 7 |
|
(MID) Weston McKennie |
90 | Hardly got involved going forward early, but he was a leader, helped keep the team organized and gave everything. While his passing wasn’t great, he delivered the knockout blow with a fine goal. | 6.5 |
|
(MID) Yunus Musah |
82 | Split defenders well with his passing, got forward into space and was one of the bright spots. Completed 87.5 percent of his passes and seems to have cemented his spot as a starter. | 8 |
|
(FWD) Brenden Aaronson |
69 | Decent down the left but didn’t see as much of the ball as he would have liked. Was replaced in the second half for Christian Pulisic as the team needed to mix things up. | 5 |
|
(FWD) Ricardo Pepi |
82 | The FC Dallas striker was not a threat to score in the first half at all, but he did everything else so well. In the second, he had a tremendous yet difficult chance early on and skied it. | 5 |
|
(FWD) Tim Weah |
89 | Worked his tail off down the right and had his moments, but the space to fire on frame wasn’t there. It didn’t matter, because in the second half he delivered with a beautiful assist to Pulisic. He was electric and created a team-high three chances while completing 88.9 percent of his passes. | 8 |
|
Christian Pulisic |
Aaronson (69′) | Got the winning goal with a fine header just five minutes after coming on. Was brought on to score and did just that. Couldn’t ask for more. | 8.5 |
| Kellyn Acosta | Musah (82′) | Late sub to add some possession and muscle to the middle. | 6.5 |
| Jesus Ferreira | Pepi (82′) | Played eight minutes and almost scored late with a decent look. His movement was sharp and was quick to find space. | 6 |
| Chris Richards | Weah (91′) | Time-wasting sub, but good to get him in as he could start in Jamaica on Tuesday. | N/A |
| Gregg Berhalter | 4 | His team pressed high, they outplayed Mexico in the second half and were deserved winners. That was an electric performance that showed they remain the kings of Concacaf. Bringing on Pulisic was an obvious need, and credit to him for not waiting too long. | 8.5 |
