The American Outlaws with another impressive showing for an international friendly
by Tess Reicke
USA vs. Bolivia
The U.S. Men’s National Team faced Bolivia at Children’s Mercy Park in a friendly on Saturday, May 28th. Stands were relatively empty but the energy, especially from the American Outlaws supporters club filled the stadium.
At the start of the first half, both the USMNT and Bolivia lacked control. Once the players got the ball, it was immediately lost to the other team which led to a concentration in mid-field.
Possession in the Mid-Field was hard going in the early minutes
Friendlies can make for a more relaxed atmosphere so the players and coaches get a better feel for how real matches will play out. The fans however treat this match as they would any other.
In the 26th minute, Gyasi Zardes (9) scored the first goal of the match making it his fourth USMNT career goal. The goal was assisted by Alejandro Bedoya (11).
Zardes lead the Stars and Stripes offense with 2 goals on the night
Just 10 minutes after the first goal, John Brooks (6) scored another goal causing the Outlaws and partisan faithful to go wild.
It seems the lack of control on both sides allowed for U.S. to have opportunities that Bolivia hadn’t quite been able to get.
The second-half started with a couple of substitutions with DeAndre Yedlin and Fabian Johnson entering for Matt Besler and Michael Orozco. Shortly after Zardes went on to score yet another goal in the 52nd minute making it 3-0.
Bolivia struggled with the added pressure Yedlin applied after subbing in at start of the 2nd half
Zardes is a player the U.S. will need to keep an eye on as the team develops.
In the 63rd minute another set of subs were made with Zardes being replaced Christian Pulisic. This proved to be a good sub because the 17-year-old quickly scored his first international goal in the 69th minute.
17 year old substitute Christian Pulisic became the youngest ever USMNT scorer with his first senior team goal
The USMNT’s control improved during the second-half, keeping the ball towards Bolivia’s goal. Bolivia just couldn’t grab onto the ball and move it past mid-field for much longer than a few seconds.
At the final whistle, the score was 4-0.
The match was the last of the Pre-Copa America friendly matches. These friendlies provided information for how the rest of the tournament could play out in the summer. The first match of the tournament is Friday, June 3 in Santa Clara, CA with USMNT facing Colombia. Kick-off begins at 9:30 p.m. ET.
