USMNT 3, Senegal 2: Two Halves, One Very Good Team

Alex Freeman, seen here in training on Wednesday, was one of the top players in the first half for the USMNT. (photo: Jason Longshore for the SDH Network)

The United States beat Senegal 3-2 in the Allstate Continental Clásico on Sunday at Bank of America Stadium, a result that told two very different stories depending on which 45 minutes you were watching. The first half belonged to Mauricio Pochettino's first eleven. The second half belonged mostly to Senegal, with individual moments of American quality providing the difference. Twelve days from the World Cup opener against Paraguay in Los Angeles, Pochettino got information on nearly his entire roster and a win against a top-15 opponent. That is about as good as a final tune-up can go.

It was also the first-ever meeting between these two countries, and the U.S. extended its winning streak against African opposition to seven matches.

The First Half

Pochettino's 3-4-2-1 pressed Senegal into errors from the first minute. By the seventh, the combination was already working. Christian Pulisic drew Senegal's defense wide, Ricardo Pepi held the ball up and laid it back to Pulisic, Pulisic delivered across goal, and Sergiño Dest arrived at the back post. Clean, purposeful, the kind of goal that looks rehearsed because it was. Pulisic's 85th cap tied him with Frankie Hejduk and Bruce Murray at 22nd on the USMNT's all-time appearances list, and he wasted no time making it count.

The second goal in the 20th minute was better. Alex Freeman carried the ball forward and played a perfectly weighted outside-of-the-right-foot pass to Pepi, who found Pulisic from a tight angle on the right. Pulisic dribbled the keeper and finished. That was Pulisic's eighth match with both a goal and an assist, tying Clint Dempsey for second on the USMNT's all-time list behind only Landon Donovan's 13. Pochettino, who had said earlier in the week that he was certain Pulisic would score at the World Cup, connected the performance directly to the habits built in training. The 45 minutes, he said postgame, reflected the work Pulisic had put in from day one of camp.

At 2-0 in the 20th minute the numbers backed up the eye test. Eighteen box touches to Senegal's ten. Twenty-eight final third entries to twenty-one. The U.S. won 59% of first-half duels and completed seven of eleven dribbles.

Freeman was a standout individual of the first half. He finished with 39 touches and completed 27 of 28 passes at 96%, won aerial duels, stepped in front of Mané repeatedly on balls down the channel, made three clearances, and still found the awareness to carry forward and create. What he does structurally matters as much as the individual actions. With Freeman absorbing the defensive responsibility in behind, Dest pushed higher and functioned as a winger. Dest completed all four of his dribbles and finished 17 of 20 passes. That right side pairing will be a weapon when the World Cup starts. Freeman, at 21 the youngest player on the roster, is now 15 consecutive appearances into his USMNT career and making the case for himself every time out.

Pepi was a factor in both goals. Two key passes, one big chance created, and hold-up play that was the foundation the combinations were built on. Pochettino said postgame that after a difficult stretch with injuries he is seeing a different player now, someone unlocked in a week of training. Antonee Robinson on the left was active: 34 touches, three accurate crosses, nine duels with six won. Giovanni Reyna at 22 of 27 passing was tidy in the center. During the hydration break, Pochettino gathered his players and showed them specific clips on a laptop, a method he has used since 2009 to give players visual feedback on what to correct and what to reinforce. The stoppage gave him a moment to do it mid-game.

The second half of the first half was less convincing. The U.S. slowed down building from the back, Senegal found their legs, and Mané made it 2-1 before halftime. Antonee Robinson lost the ball in the middle third, Senegal transitioned in seconds, and Tyler Adams was a half-step late picking up Mané's diagonal run. Pochettino was direct about it postgame: the chances Senegal created came from American mistakes, not Senegal quality. Two-one at the break when it could have been two-nil.

The Second Half

Ten of eleven changes at halftime. Senegal made two. The shape mostly stayed the same but the cohesion was not as strong. Malik Tillman started well and forced a turnover. Folarin Balogun had a goal correctly cancelled by VAR for offside in the 49th minute. Then Miles Robinson turned the ball over, Chris Brady could not get there in time to punch it away, and Mané scored again at the 52nd minute. 2-2, and the game was level and frantic.

The pass map in the second half tells the story plainly. Senegal completed 206 accurate passes to the U.S.'s 76, and had 70% of the ball. Once Berhalter was substituted, the shape drifted toward a back four with Maximilian Arfsten and Joe Scally at fullback. Arfsten was clean in possession, completing all seven of his passes. Scally was exposed at least once, rescued by a Tim Weah sliding block. Berhalter, who played 76 minutes across both halves, was called a monster by Pochettino in terms of professionalism and commitment. The data is more complicated: 11 duels with five won, four tackles, but also an error leading to a shot and five times dispossessed. The raw commitment is not in question. The consistency in execution still is.

Balogun got the winner in the 63rd minute and it was the moment of the match. Weah found Weston McKennie, McKennie played it back to Balogun, a defender got a touch, and Balogun had the composure to stay with it and find the finish. One goal, one assist, two key passes in 49 minutes. Pochettino said in Spanish postgame that the McKennie-Tillman-Balogun combination is one of several partnerships forming that could make a difference when the tournament starts. McKennie's passing range and his connection with Balogun are worth watching come June 12.

The 75th minute sequence was the best sustained pressure of the second half: a Balogun shot saved, McKennie off the post, Balogun saved again. Tillman picked up a yellow card in the 66th minute. Alex Zendejas, on for the final 18 minutes, had five duels with four won and forced a block and a corner in the 82nd.

One additional note from this match: Chris Brady made his international debut in the second half, becoming the 889th player to earn a cap for the USMNT since 1916. Pochettino said he specifically wanted Brady to have his debut in a friendly before the tournament so that his first cap would not come in a World Cup game if he was needed. Brady is expected to be the third goalkeeper this summer, but the competition between Matt Turner and Matt Freese for the starting role continues.

What It Means

This was the second win under Pochettino against a top-15 opponent, following the 5-1 result against Uruguay last November. The roster showed its ceiling and its floor in the same 90 minutes, which is exactly what a tune-up should do. Pochettino was clear postgame that he saw things the team needs to improve, that those are conversations that have been ongoing for a year and a half, and that the work continues into the Germany friendly next Saturday before Paraguay on June 12 in Los Angeles.

The depth drop is real, but this is a strong starting group and the next few on the depth chart are pushing in certain positions. Add a healthy Weston McKennie and Chris Richards back to the group that started today and it gets stronger still. Freeman in that right center-back role is a genuine tactical difference-maker for Pochettino. The battle up top between Balogun, Pepi, and Haji Wright will continue throughout the summer. And Pulisic, building the habits and the confidence Pochettino talked about all week, looked like the player this team needs him to be.

Germany is next. Then it counts.