The United States scored its most impressive win under head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s with a 5-1 thrashing of Uruguay in an international friendly on Tuesday.
A first-half goal blitz from the USA laid the foundations for the emphatic victory in Tampa against Marcelo Bielsa’s overwhelmed army.
The co-host of FIFA World Cup 2026 raced into a 4-0 lead just before half-time, thanks to a goal from Sebastian Berhalter, two goals from Alex Freeman and a 42nd-minute strike from Diego Luna.
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Although Giorgian de Arrascaeta pulled a goal back in first-half stoppage time for Uruguay, Pochettino’s team completed the rout with a 68th-minute Tanner Tessmann goal.
It was the first time the USA ever scored five goals against a World Cup-winning nation and was further evidence that Pochettino’s squad is on an upward curve after a bumpy start to the Argentine coach’s reign.
US goalscorer Berhalter, the son of former US coach Gregg Berhalter, had set the ball rolling with a sensational strike in the 17th minute, curling a sweetly struck shot into the far corner after a cleverly worked free kick routine.
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“We wanted to make a statement,” Sebastian Berhalter said afterwards.
“We wanted to show what US soccer is about. We had a chance to go out here and give everything we had and we were ready against a good Uruguay team,” the Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder added.
“We just wanted to make the fans happy— to give them something to believe in and hopefully tonight we went out there and did that.”
Published on Nov 19, 2025