Pulisic’s 2 goals fuel U.S. victory

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Christian Pulisic rescued the United States with a pair of second-half goals, and the Americans beat Trinidad and Tobago 2-0 on Thursday night to move into third place at the halfway point in the final round of World Cup qualifying.

Pulisic, 18, ended a frustrating start for the U.S. offense with a goal in the 52nd minute and then added another in the 62nd. He has seven goals and five assists in 15 international appearances, including four goals and three assists in his last four contests.

After crashing to an 0-2 start in the hexagonal of the North and Central American and Caribbean region, the U.S. is back among the top three, which earn berths at next year’s tournament in Russia. Mexico leads with 10 points, followed by Costa Rica, which has seven and is ahead of the U.S. on goal difference. Panama (five), Honduras (four) and Trinidad (three) trail. The fourth-place team advances to a playoff against Asia’s No. 5 nation. In other soccer news: • Rose Lavelle scored in the 56th minute of the second half, lifting the U.S. women to a 1-0 victory over Sweden in a friendly at Goteborg, Sweden.

• Leicester hired Craig Shakespeare as the team’s permanent manager on a three-year deal after his successful interim run in charge of the 2015-16 Premier League champion. Shakespeare replaced titlewinning manager Claudio Ranieri in February on a short-term deal and won eight of his 16 games in all competitions, helping Leicester pull clear of the league’s relegation zone.

• England and Venezuela advanced to the Under-20 World Cup final. England defeated Italy 3-1 at Jeonju, South Korea, while Venezuela beat Uruguay 4-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw at Daejeon. The final will be Sunday at Suwon, South Korea.