U.S. men’s soccer is back, and while their Sunday victory over the Mexican national team in the CONCACAF Nations League final signaled their apparent
U.S. men’s soccer is back, and while their Sunday victory over the Mexican national team in the CONCACAF Nations League final signaled their apparent resurgence on the national stage, it was the contentious nature of the match — both from fans and players — that dominated the conversation afterwards. Christian Pulisic’s penalty kick in extra time won the match 3-2 for the Americans before backup goalie Ethan Horvath’s incredible penalty save off of a hand-ball. CHRISTIAN PULISIC IN EXTRA-TIME ???? (???? @CBSSportsGolazo) pic.twitter.com/fLuUEwsZc5 B/R Football (@brfootball) June 7, 2021 “For this group, it’s really important,” U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter said after the win. “We’re a young side and we need to learn how to win. These games are very difficult, and for us it was about having a game plan and executing the game plan, but then it’s also about the fight in the spirit.” It was the first competitive victory for the U.S. men’s team over Mexico since 2013, and the match between the two rivals was far from friendly, with shoving matches between players, flying projectiles from the stands, and homophobic slurs hurled at American players.
