Pulisic returns as U.S. held to draw by Canada
NASHVILLE, TENN. — Two games into World Cup qualifying, a rebuilt U.S. soccer team is in trouble.
Three starters are hurt. Key midfielder Weston Mckennie didn’t dress because he violated team COVID protocols.
Unable to break down a Canadian team that sat back with five defenders, the Americans wasted a second-half lead in a 1-1 draw Sunday night that left them with two points after two games.
Failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup hangs over players and the American fan base like a never-ending storm.
“We have to really turn it around. We need to start winning games,” said U.S. star Christian Pulisic, who returned after missing the 0-0 draw at El Salvador on Thursday while regaining fitness following a positive COVID-19 test.
Brenden Aaronson scored in the 55th minute off a flowing passing sequence capped by a cross from Antonee Robinson, but an unmarked Cyle Larin tied it seven minutes later after Canadian star Alphonso Davies smoked past Deandre Yedlin down the left flank.
Yedlin had entered in the 44th minute after right back Sergiño Dest sprained an ankle, joining midfielder Gio Reyna (strained right hamstring at El Salvador) and No, 1 goalkeeper Zack Steffen (positive COVID test following back spasms) on the sidelines.
Coach Gregg Berhalter said it was too early to announce whether Mckennie would return for Wednesday night’s game at Honduras, another difficult Central American field where the Americans came away with a draw in qualifying four years ago. Steffen and Reyna won’t make the trip.
“We’ve got to have a long look in the mirror and really establish what our goals are here,” midfielder Tyler Adams said. “I think that coming into the first game we had goals, we had a milestone goal, performance goals and if we did these things, we would characterize that as success. Coming out of the first two games, we’re a little bit shy now of those goals that we have set, so we need to kind of reorganize our thought process and figure out what’s the most important thing.”
Pulisic was dynamic, putting a shot off a post in the 40th minute of his first match since Chelsea’s opener against Crystal Palace on Aug. 14. The Americans had 72% possession, outshot Canada 12-6 and had little to show for it.
Mexico (2-0) leads the North and Central American and Caribbean region with six points, followed by Panama (1-0-1) with four. Canada (0-02) is third with two points, ahead of the U.S. and Honduras on total goals, with El Salvador farther back. Costa Rica (0-1-1) has one point and Jamaica (0-2) none.
The top three nations qualify for next year’s tournament in Qatar, and the fourth-place team advances to a playoff.