The U.S. men’s national team delivered some positive moments in recent friendlies against Senegal and Germany, but also endured some rough ones as well, something they can’t afford when FIFA World Cup play begins.
Mauricio Pochettino’s squad suffered two defensive breakdowns which led to a pair of Sadio Mane goals at Bank of America Stadium back on May 31. That was followed up by the Americans conceding a Kai Havertz opening goal less than two minutes into Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Soldier Field.
Mane’s first goal came via a split through ball pass between defenders Tim Ream and Mark McKenzie that allowed the veteran attacker to slot home. His second came after Miles Robinson’s lack of awareness inside of his own half eventually led to him racing upfield and edging Chris Brady to a loose ball before poking into an empty net.
As for Havertz, his early header came on a free kick after he raced in front of the USMNT backline to finish past Matt Freese. Dangerous service from Joshua Kimmich left the American defenders flatfooted, watching as Havertz kickstarted an eventual win for the Germans.
While the USMNT’s overall performance was positive in both matches, the trio of defensive miscues are a slight reminder of the continued improvement needed to make a deep World Cup run. Ream voiced those concerns during his media availability on Monday, affirming that the USMNT will be doing everything they can to limit the mistakes against Paraguay and beyond.
“I think there’s always room and areas to improve,” Ream said in a press conference from California. “Obviously not happy with goals conceded. I think that’s always a big one that everybody, including ourselves, would look at. Connections and communication can always be even better than they are and that solves a lot of problems.
“We’ll look at video over the next couple of days and understand where we can be tighter, where we can be more connected,” he added. “But if you look at the Germany game [there was] improvement. We’ll look at areas and make sure that everything’s tightened and buttoned up.”
The USMNT will face Paraguay in Los Angeles on Friday before concluding Group D play against Australia and Turkey respectively.