Pulisic's magic not enough as USMNT fail Germany friendly test

Germany defeated the US Men’s National Team (USMNT) at Rentschler Field in Connecticut despite the home nation taking the lead.

The fantastic goal scored by Christian Pulisic was just the latest example of his stellar form on the field.

After a tense opening 15 minutes, the USMNT finally broke through in the 27th minute on a goal by Christian Pulisic.

The team captain, fresh off an impressive start at AC Milan, gave the Americans the lead against Germany in a friendly on Saturday with a spectacular curler from beyond the penalty area.

Individual brilliance in first half

While dribbling down the sideline, the winger picked up the ball and sped past Jonathan Tah, eventually overtaking his former Chelsea teammate Antonio Rudiger.

Then, with goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen helpless, he buried the ball into the top corner.

For Pulisic, it was his 27th goal in the Stars and Stripes jersey. The 25-year-old keeps steering a youthful squad that has its eyes set on doing well in the Copa America 2024 and the World Cup 2026, both of which will be held in their home country.

However, in the 39th minute, just as the goal seemed to calm the Americans down, the away team scored to draw even. Midfielder Leroy Sane had some impressive individual talent of his own to answer.

He maneuvered out of Turner’s reach with a dribble and then set up Ikay Gundogan for a tap-in goal.

Second half brought real danger for Matt Turner

After an overly quiet first half, Julian Nagelsmann’s players quickly responded with two goals. In the 58th minute, Gosens had a key role in the opening goal when he sent a low ball into the box that was converted by the forward Niclas Füllkrug.

Then, just three minutes later, Füllkrug found Musiala in the area, and the latter finished off a pass with a diving shot.

The United States kept attacking and came close to scoring many times after using all six of their replacements. Yunus Musah, a midfielder, came close from a corner but his shot was high and wide. Also, Ricardo Pepi was a menace inside the German penalty area before being taken out of harm’s way.

Photo credit: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire