The United States men's national team has a new coach, Mauricio Pochettino was appointed head coach of the US Soccer team just ahead of their international friendly against New Zealand. Pochettino has plenty of work to do as the USMNT were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw on Tuesday after Christian Pulisic put the hosts ahead only for Ben Waine to score a late equalizer.
The two sides squared off against each other at the TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, as Ricardo Pepi broke the deadlock early in the fixture. Pepi found the back of the net and the USMNT broke into early celebrations, only for the referee to eventually rule out the strike.
Interim head coach Mikey Vargas and his side thought they had taken an early lead but their celebrations were cut short after the PSV Eindhoven star broke the deadlock, but the Honduran referee had second thoughts about the strike.
The referee had a word with the assistant referee and together they decided to chalk off the goal over a harsh foul that took place during the build-up.
Despite the setback, shortly after the hour mark, Pulisic fired home the opening goal after a great build-up play right from the ring wing. Pepi was involved once again as he fed Folarin Balogun who held the ball up and fed it to Pulisic who rifled home a left-footed strike to give the hosts something to celebrate.
With his 31st goal in 73 appearances for the US men's national team, Christian Pulisic surpassed Brian McBride to enter the top five highest goal scorers for the country. The AC Milan winger is 26 goals behind USMNT all-time leading goal-scorer Clint Dempsey who has 57 goals to his name.
🗣️ Super sub Christian Pulisic!Beautiful set up gives the @USMNT the lead over New Zealand. 🇺🇸pic.twitter.com/RF4BwJrqgX
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 11, 2024
The USMNT seemed to be heading towards a victory but two minutes before the end of regulation time Ben Waine equalized for New Zealand to snatch a late draw for his side.
On the back of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Canada on Saturday, the US Soccer team were hoping for a response against the New Zealand but their rut continues since the sacking of Gregg Berhalter who oversaw a disappointed Copa America 2024 campaign.
Pochettino will hope to usher in a new era following his appointment 21 months ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup which will be co-hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada. The Argentine's first assignment as the USMNT coach will be a friendly against Panama on October 12, before they face Mexico three days later.