USMNT drops friendly against Portugal

USA 0-2 Portugal

ATLANTA, GA–No Cristiano Ronaldo for Portugal, but there was Bruno Fernandes and he assisted on both goals in Portugal’s 2-0 win over the USA before 72,297 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Tuesday night.

The first goal came in the 37th minute. It started with a turnover in midfield leading to a Portuguese counterattack. Vitinha found Fernandes making a run and the latter back-heeled the ball to Francisco Trincao for the finish.

Fernandes would assist on the second goal in the 59th minute as well. He found Joao Felix unmarked at the edge of the area and Felix took one touch and then struck it through traffic and into the net to make it 2-0.

The USA had five shots on target, but none really troubled Jose Sa. This weekend raises more concerns about whether the USA can go far in the upcoming World Cup. Christian Pulisic last scored for the USA on November 18th, 2024, versus Jamaica. For his part, Pulisic remains confident that things for the USA ‘are going to click’ come World Cup time.

“I remember people were doubting us after that camp,” Pulisic said of the September 2022 friendlies. “Maybe we didn’t have a great camp, and at the end of the day, we go in, we have a great World Cup. It’s all behind us. So like I said, better now, and we’re going to figure it out. We’re going to figure it out when it really counts.”

That 2022 World Cup saw the USA advance to the Round of 16. The Round of 16 in this upcoming World Cup is now an extra match away. The group now looks a little tougher with Türkiye’s inclusion after the Turks defeated Kosovo to claim the final spot in Group D. The USA just has a little over two months to figure things out, and it’s not all about Christian Pulisic, before it’s June 13th match against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles (6pm PT, Fox/Telemundo).

Before that, they will play Senegal in Charlotte on May 31st (3:30pm ET, TNT/HBO Max/Telemundo/Peacock) and then Germany at Soldier Field in Chicago on June 6th (1:30pm CT, TNT/HBO Max/Telemundo/Peacock) .

Photos by Edwin Gomez