🇺🇸 Pochettino off to winning ways as the United States defeat Panama

The United States kicked off Mauricio Pochettino’s tenure with a 2-0 friendly win over Panama.

Scorers: Musah 49′, Pepi 90+4′

It was a sloppy start to the Pochettino era as the United States struggled to find their feet in the opening few minutes of the match, but the friendly showdown quickly fell into a pattern of USA dominance.

The home side had a clear emphasis on winning the ball back in dangerous areas in order to attack quickly, fashioning a few solid scoring looks for the likes of Christian Pulisic, Josh Sargent, and Brendan Aaronson, but the attacking trio struggled to put their chances away.

Finally, one of those chances was taken after the break when a slick attacking move was finished off by Yunus Musah, who opened his United States account by tapping home a Christian Pulisic cross.

The United States’ tempo seemed to drop after the goal and a handful of substitutions from the new boss, but Panama did little to punish the home side. The visitors did fashion one big chance in the dying minutes however, but José Fajardo somehow missed from point-blank range to spare the U.S. blushes.

That miss was punished however, as Ricardo Pepi grabbed a late second goal for the home side thanks a superb Haji Wright cross, killing off the away side with aplomb.

The Stars and Stripes will now turn their attention to a midweek showdown with the old rival, Mexico, in Guadalajara.