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USMNT Man of the Match: Christian Pulisic

The U.S. Men’s National Team got a much needed win over Trinidad and Tobago and they can thank Christian Pulisic for a large part of it.

The young USMNT midfielder helped set up three of the team’s five goals before scoring the fourth himself. His cross found Aaron Long’s head for the opener, another fell to Nick Lima for the assist on Gyasi Zardes’ first of the night, and it was his pass that set up Zardes’ second as well.

He also scored the USMNT’s fourth goal of the rout, helping set up a winner take all match in Group D against Panama on Wednesday night in Kansas City.

Also turning in high end performances were Gyasi Zardes, who was routinely in the right place at the right time in the second half, and Pail Arriola, who scored a goal and was a menace out wide all night.

What did you think of Pulisic’s performance in Cleveland? Who else stood out for you in the blowout?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Comments

  1. Christian definitely was a standout and looked as good as he was in the German 1st division this season. However, the entire team looked good against a VERY Athletic TNT Team. To go from 1-2 to 6-0 against them shows a major step forward toward respectability in the International Soccer Community.

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    • Shows what a difference a goal makes. TNT really had a better chance early in this game but instead of Howard or Gonzo misplaying it Steffen made a save. A very similar team with the same manager couldn’t pull off a miracle twice. Our team was not mentally prepared in Sept. of 2017 a large part of that falls on Arena but they are professionals so some of that is on the guys too.

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  2. Michael Bradley is a complete waste of time. He passes the ball as if it’s a hot potato. Does he get extra money when he passes it backwards ?

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  3. Finally pullisic found his spot as a number 10 in the middle of the field while also having the freedom of roaming the pitch. Arriola great game. Although I criticize zardes he gets credit for goals but any foward should make those finishes. Altidore needs to start next game to get rythm. But by now it’s clear zardes will start in the ko rounds bc he has established familiarity with teammates. It would be fun to see both up top together but that is not possible.

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    • I think the concern with Jozy is can he provide the defensive pressure that Zardes does? To me this season Jozy seems to have bulked up more than the last few. It could just be an optical illusion because of his bulk but I describe his movement this season as lumbering. I would hope he’s get at least 30 or 45 minutes against Panama.

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  4. Disagree. While he had a great second half, I felt like he was not effective until he assisted on Long’s first goal in the 41st minute. My vote would go to Tyler Boyd who, inexplicably, was the first substitution. He played with great poise and confidence, something that some of his teammates were lacking at the beginning of the game.

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    • Boyd was very good (and I’d agree that Pulisic took a couple of dead balls that I really would’ve preferred to see Boyd take). But your arguments don’t resonate with me beyond that. Pulisic was pure legend the entire second half. Man of the match beyond doubt. And Boyd’s sub (Morris) was outstanding. It’s not a slight against Boyd, but that was a great substitution that caused T&T even greater disarray. Boyd will start again in the knockout rounds I have to believe, and I hope he is the free-kick taker.

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      • Here’s where I see things differently, Gomer: When T&T was still playing us toe to toe and still able to keep up with our pace, our best player was not making an impact. Unlike in the Guyana game when Pulisic was making incisive runs runs deep into their half, in this case he was very quiet or, worse, losing the ball. Meanwhile, Boyd was taking chances and putting T&T on their heels. I’m not denying that CP had a great second half, I just need him to be present for the full 90, the way that Arriola was and Boyd (until he was taken out).

        The bottom line is that USMNT wore them down and, after 65 minutes of moving them all over the field, T&T just collapsed. I think Boyd was a big part of that, but he wasn’t on the field when the dam broke.

    • Had he scored on one of those opportunities in the first half you’d have an argument. He was our best in the first half but had nothing to do with any of the goals so no Tyler was not MotM. Since he was subbed almost exactly at the hour mark it felt planned to me. You have to keep in mind Boyd has had no break after the Euro season unlike most of the other Europe based players.

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    • Ironically, the team was better when Boyd was substituted. You could have an argument that he was actually a weak link since he had a lot of opportunities yet didn’t put any of them away. While Boyd looks good on the field, you can’t deny that Morris was better with his two assists. Some might think Boyd’s spot is solidified. However, Morris looks like the better option given his performance against decent competition.

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      • Definitely not, Boyd does need more time to go used to playing with his new teammates, sometimes missed open guys or someone missed him but he’s far better than Morris. After the Zardes goals TnT completely stopped defending. Morris made up for a poor March, but he no way should over take Boyd.

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