The U.S. men’s national team was outplayed by England on Thursday at Wembley Stadium in London. The Three Lions deserved their 3-0 win, with two quick-strike goals in the first half proving the difference. But Christian Pulisic vs England might’ve been the highlight of the match, particularly eight seconds of love in the second half.
For as young and inexperienced as the USMNT squad is — and for the patience that’s required throughout this painful rebuilding process — it’s a sobering thought that the England side that ran circles around its opponent at Wembley today featured standout performances from Dele Alli (age 22), Ben Chilwell (21), Trent Alexander-Arnold (20) and Jadon Sancho (18).
We haven’t seen Christian Pulisic in a USMNT jersey since the 3-0 victory over Bolivia back on May 28, when we were given a tantalizing look at the attacking combination play between himself, Tim Weah and Josh Sargent.
The Scotland women’s national team gave the U.S. all it could handle on Tuesday at St Mirren Park, and although there was warm applause for Alex Morgan and an audible intake of breath amongst the 3,790 in attendance during the USWNT’s best passages of play, the Scots will have left their home supporters looking forward to next summer’s World Cup with keen anticipation.
The U.S. just finished one helluva 2018. But it’s all about getting ready for 2019.
The USWNT concluded an unbeaten year with a 1-0 victory over Scotland on Tuesday in Paisley, Scotland. And a familiar face was responsible for the goal yet again for the No. 1-ranked team in the world.
Alex Morgan scored for the 18th time in 2018 to propel the U.S. to a 10th straight win and increase the USWNT’s unbeaten streak to 28 (25 of which were wins). The U.S. went 18-0-2 in 2018, with draws against Australia and France the lone blemishes.
Women’s soccer is in the midst of an international break right now, which means, as some may be aware, yes, yes the USWNT is playing — but so are many others. One of these others is England, who scheduled a pair of friendlies against European competition as part of its World Cup preparations.
The United States didn’t look as fluid as it did last month when the USWNT cruised to a Women’s Concacaf Championship, but Jill Ellis’ group got it done. With a 1-0 victory over Portugal on Thursday in Lisbon, the USWNT recorded its 500th all-time victory.
The U.S. women’s national team played its first-ever match on Aug. 18, 1985. They lost, 1-0 to Italy. The Americans have been pretty good since, racking up an impressive USWNT record, which hit an unprecedented milestone on Thursday.
A few groans went out across the country when Bobby Wood was given the start against Colombia in the USMNT’s friendly on Thursday in Florida. The reason was made clear on Tuesday night when Josh Sargent got his chance against Peru.
Sargent, an 18-year-old native of Missouri, showed that he’s the future for the U.S. at the striker position with some excellent hold-up play, passing and — most importantly — goal scoring as the USMNT tied Peru 1-1 on Tuesday in Connecticut.