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Christian Pulisic came off the bench and scored in the 74th minute and Weston McKennie scored in the 85th minute as the United States defeated Mexico 2-0 in the World Cup qualifiers played in Cincinnati on Friday night.
Zach Steffen made four stops for a tidy US (4-1-2), and after Mexico (4-1-2) he moved to the top of the CONCACAF standings halfway through the 14-game tournament with a goal difference. The U.S. has scored seven more goals than allowed, while Mexico has scored in the plus-5.
Pulisic came on for Brenden Aaronson in the 69th minute after a close-range clash resulted in three yellow cards.
It didn’t take long for Pulisic to win at TQL Stadium, home of FC Cincinnati, on a cold, humid night.
“It was incredible, and the fans did so much better,” Pulisic said of the exhausted people in Ohio without letting in the cold, humid conditions.
“They really came out tonight. It was so loud there. We live in moments like that.”
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Tim Weah, the son of former Golden Ball winner George Weah, drove the ball from the 18-meter edge of his right wing and sent a cross to Pulisice. The outstanding Chelsea passed a defender to reach the ball and put a powerful header from the head of the Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa about 3 meters.
Pulisic has not played in the U.S. since he sprained his ankle in the Sept. 8 World Cup qualifier in Honduras. He stayed on the sidelines until he stepped out of Chelsea’s chair in a Champions League match played in Malmo on 2 November.
McKennie doubled the lead by inserting a 10-meter shot from the right center of the penalty area into the far post after he regained control of the ball after being blocked by a Mexican defender.
The U.S. had to play a short four-minute stoppage time in the second half after Miles Robinson received a second yellow card and was sent off in the 89th minute.
The clash took place in the 68th minute after Aaronson was thrown to the ground by Mexican Luis Rodriguez, who seemed to be clawing at Aaron’s face as he fell down. McKennie immediately approached and pushed Rodriguez away, and Steffen later went through the middle of the field and went to the jaw with referee Ivan Arcides Barton Cisneros, giving the three players a card. That means McKennie will have to miss his next game on Tuesday in Jamaica for accumulating a yellow card.
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Pulisic said fans should always expect sparks to fly in the face of enemies.
“USA and Mexico, you know what you’re going to get. Intensity,” he said.
“It was a crazy game, no doubt, but it’s what we expected. It was hard to break them. I’m glad I was able to get in and help. In the end, three points are tremendous.”
Canada beat Costa Rica 1-0 on Friday with 13 points. Panama has 11 and Costa Rica has six to round out the team’s top four.
The United States came out on top in the last two team encounters, but the game played in Cincinnati was clearly the most important for the U.S..
The team is eager to qualify for next year’s World Cup in Qatar, leaving behind the humiliating loss it suffered at the hands of Trinidad and Tobago four years ago, which prevented it from reaching the World Cup in Russia.
“We’re in a good place now, but we have a lot more games to play,” Pulisic said.
“It’s just a step towards reaching the World Championships,” he added.
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