No surprises in group C. Christian Pulisic is the star of the evening in Arlington, Texas, and gives the United States success on their debut against Bolivia: the hosts win 2-0 thanks to a pearl from the number 10, who he broke the deadlock after three laps of the clock and then served the ball to Balogun to double the lead. Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay doesn’t score either, as they close out the Panama game 3-1: Araujo, with a Eurogoal, Nunez and Vina decide.
UNITED STATES-BOLIVIA 2-0
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Good first match for the home team. In the setting of the spectacular AT&T Stadium in Arlington, the United States made no mistake in their debut and liquidated Bolivia in just a few minutes, in a match refereed by the Italian Maurizio Mariani. The protagonist of the evening is the AC Milan player Christian Pulisic, who after three laps of the clock paves the way for his team with a Eurogoal to be seen and seen again: support from Weah from the left, a right-footed shot under the intersection and a run towards the bench for the ‘celebration with the staff. Coach Gregg Berhalter’s national team took courage and doubled the lead just before the break with Balogun on the counterattack. The Monaco striker is served by Pulisic and hits Viscarra with a nice diagonal left foot. In the second half the USA controlled the game (also featuring the other Rossoneri Musah for 45 minutes) and avoided taking risks against a Bolivia that was never truly dangerous. Also on the pitch for 78 minutes was the other Juventus player McKennie, who was booked at the start of the second half.
URUGUAY-PANAMA 3-1
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The other pearl comes from the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. It bears the signature of Maximiliano Araujo and it is a great left-footed shot from the edge of the area, printed under the top corner in the quarter of an hour. It’s a goal that puts Uruguay’s game on the rocks: coach Marcelo Bielsa’s team holds the field well, concedes little to the modest Central American national team and fails to double their lead on several occasions. Darwin Nunez especially tries: around the half hour mark Mosquera denies him the advantage, while at the start of the second half his header misses the target. The 2-0 came a few minutes into the ninetieth minute: Araujo’s header hit the defense and this time the Liverpool striker made no mistake on the rebound, closing the game with a left-footed volley. In full recovery there was also room for the trio of headers from former Roma and Sassuolo player Matias Vina and for the flash of Murillo, who closed the gap. Celeste takes the 3 points on their debut and takes the United States to the top of group C.
