USMNT had three points in its grasp but let a pair slip away. avicreditor with three thoughts on a physically and emotionally exhausting opener at the World Cup—and what it means in terms of getting out of the group
The U.S. men’s national team’s return to the World Cup stage began with a bang and then ended with a disappointment.
One might expect a team that is the second-youngest in the competition and featuring 11 starters making their World Cup debut to come out of the gates a bit wobbly. World Cups are different. No Champions League match—not even a final, which Christian Pulisic has played in—carries the same gravity as representing your country on the World Cup stage. And yet there was no fear to be found.
While Wales seized a bit of the momentum in the second half, the U.S. stayed composed and at the ready, embodied by goalkeeper Matt Turner, whose first save was on a free bullet header that was the culmination of Welsh pressure in the U.S.’s box. With players forced to miss a match after receiving two, it puts that U.S. trio on high alert. And beyond that, it forced Dest and McKennie—who were injury doubts entering the match—to play with a bit less reckless abandon, unable to fully get stuck in for fear of being sent off. The U.S. has depth at right back behind Dest, but McKennie’s place in the U.S. midfield is invaluable. Those opening 15 minutes, while not decisive Monday, could wind up becoming a factor down the line.
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World Cup 2022: USMNT squanders dominant World Cup start, settles for draw with WalesAL RAYYAN, Qatar — Christian Pulisic had waited 1,868 days, and Tim Weah almost as long, to hear the roar. They had endured the darkest five years in American soccer history for nights like Monday, for an opportunity to bring a nation to its feet, for a chance to lift a lifetime of work onto a World Cup stage. They had suffered, and slapped away doubts, and persevered to feel an explosion. At 10:36 p.m. here at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, they scored the goal that instigated it — and for an hour, it appeared that they'd won the U.S. men's national team its 2022 World Cup opener.
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