The U.S. men’s national team was mere minutes away from snapping its winless run on Tuesday night until the unthinkable struck and handed New Zealand a draw on the road.
Christian Pulisic and Ben Waine traded goals as the USMNT tied the All Whites 1-1 at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. Pulisic delivered the opening goal off the bench for the USMNT in the second half, but Mark McKenzie’s attempted clearance in the 89th minute deflected off of Waine and into the back of the U.S. net.
The result concluded a disappointing window for Mikey Varas’ men, who learned of Mauricio Pochettino’s official hiring as head coach earlier in the day.
After New Zealand created a pair of opening chances, the USMNT thought they struck first in the 21st minute when Ricardo Pepi found the back of the net. However, Pepi was ruled offsides in the build-up play, which ruled out the potential opening goal of the match.
Liberato Cacace was denied by Matt Turner in the 39th minute before Yunus Musah’s long range strike was punched away by Max Crocrombe.
Turner was up to the task a second time before the hour mark, denying Elijah Just from point blank range.
The USMNT continued to pick up their pressure as the second half pushed forward, with Brenden Aaronson testing his luck inside of the box. Aaronson’s left-footed strike was repelled by Crocrombe, keeping the score level.
However, the Americans would find their breakthrough goal in the 68th minute through a stellar team play. Aidan Morris, Marlon Fossey, Luca De La Torre, Ricardo Pepi and Folarin Balogun all connected with passes before Balogun’s layoff pass allowed Pulisic to drill home for a 1-0 lead.
It marked Pulisic’s 31st international goal for the USMNT, moving him one behind Eric Wynalda for fourth all-time in program history.
Despite several efforts from the USMNT to pad their advantage, it was New Zealand who delivered the final goal of the match through a freakish deflection. Mark McKenzie’s clearance deflected off of Waine and into the back of the U.S. net for a 1-1 equalizer.
Several boos rained down at the final whistle from TQL Stadium as the USMNT failed to close the match out in front of their home supporters. Fossey, Aaronson and Aidan Morris were among the positive performers for the Americans.
The USMNT will return to action on October 12 in Austin, Texas against Panama before traveling to rivals Mexico three days later.
