After a decent first half from the Americans, the second half was abysmal for the USMNT. Mexico dominated in every fashion, beating the United States 1-0. It had been nearly 700 days in between competitive matches for the USMNT when the Gold Cup started, and we are still here with the same questions. What does the future of this team look like?
Let’s be honest about it. This tournament is a joke and the only acceptable outcome for a team like Mexico and the US is winning the whole thing. The average FIFA ranking of teams the United States played before Mexico was 95. There was not much competition for either the US or Mexico. Both teams were expected to be there. Not only are they expected to be there, but they are expected to win. Especially when they are playing against each other.
The defense was not the issue all night for the United States, it was the attack. No matter what team you are, if your attacking options are Jozy Altidore, Jordan Morris, and Gyasi Zardes, you are never going to have any kind of success. Altidore missed what should have been an easy goal, Morris was playing on the right wing and could not control the ball, let alone go forward, and Zardes did not do much the few times the US had the ball. This is what the United States lacks in these big games. An attacking player not named Christian Pulisic that can deliver a clutch goal.
Once the United States are able to find that, maybe they will be able to win some of these big time games and be able to advance in the development of the squad. Until then, we have the same questions. We know Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, and Zach Steffen will be staples, but at what point do players who have had their chances like Altidore, Morris, Zardes, and even Michael Bradley get benched for new ideas?
With competitions like CONCACAF Nations League coming up, the United States need to continue to win where they are expected to win. Once it is time to win a big game to win a tournament or qualify for a World Cup, we still do not know if they will be able to push through.