Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun scored in the first half for the United States men’s national team and could have done even more damage in the second half with the chances they had as they came away with the shutout win over Bolivia on Sunday to open Group C in the Copa America.
The more than 47,000 spectators in attendance at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, saw the Americans dominate a majority of the game as they look to come out of their group and play in the knockout stage of the tournament.
Gregg Berhalter‘s team did not have to wait long to score the game’s first goal as three minutes in Pulisic played a short corner to Tim Weah who returned the ball to the captain who drifted towards the edge of the 18-yard box. Pulisic then decided to have a crack at goal and found the back of the net.
Weah had a chance to double the team’s lead four minutes later when his centering pass was blocked by a Bolivian defender, leading to the ball coming back to him to take a shot that was saved by goalkeeper Guillermo Viscarra.
The U.S. continued to forge ahead in the attack and finally grabbed their second on the night in the 44th minute. Pulisic would receive the ball from Gio Reyna and dribble towards the area. As the Bolivian defenders began to gather around him, he would make a pass to Balogun on the left side and the striker would put his shot well beyond the reach of Viscarra.
Entering the second half, the host nation maintained their momentum, but that only led to several near misses as they tried to extend their lead further.
Balogun thought he had bagged his second goal in the 53rd minute, but it was ruled out immediately when the assistant referee’s flag went up for an offside call on Weah. Pulisic then had a chance near the hour mark with his shot which forced Viscarra to make a save.
Berhalter would go to his bench in the 65th minute to make his first substitutions as Ricardo Pepi and Johnny Cardoso. The PSV man had a chance immediately after stepping onto the field when Antonee Robinson crossed the ball to him in the 18-yard box only for the shot to veer wide of the goal. Pulisic would again have another opportunity minutes later with another shot missing the mark.
Pepi had another golden opportunity to grab the American’s third goal in the 79th minute when Pulisic was able to hold off his marker to center the ball to the striker. His powerful shot was on target, but Viscarra once again made the save as the ball went through his hands but somehow was able to go over the bar.
The Texas native had one more chance to get on the scoresheet near regulation time when Robinson supplied another cross into the box. Pepi was on the spot to redirect the ball, but Viscarra made a miraculous leg save on the first attempt. The ball went back to Pepi to try again, but the Bolivian netminder made another save.
Overall, it was a strong way to start the Copa America campaign, but the U.S. will have to work on putting away chances more effectively in the final third.
The team will head to Atlanta, Georgia, for their next game on Thursday when they face Panama with a chance to qualify from their group.
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