The Concacaf Gold Cup was intended as a proving ground for a relatively inexperienced U.S. Men`s National Team roster, and Sunday`s quarterfinal clash against Costa Rica provided a rigorous test. Beyond the inherent pressure of a knockout match, the 2-2 scoreline that led to a 4-3 victory via penalty shootout brought its own share of drama and difficulty.
In a match that saw both teams trade blows, the USMNT initially fell behind when Francisco Calvo converted a 12th-minute penalty for Los Ticos. The U.S. side fought back, taking a 2-1 lead by the 49th minute despite having missed a penalty of their own in the first half. Costa Rica managed to equalize later in the game, setting the stage for a dramatic penalty shootout. Keylor Navas made two saves for Costa Rica, but Matt Freese proved decisive, making three crucial stops for the USMNT. Amidst the back and forth action and the final tension, several young players seized the opportunity presented by head coach Mauricio Pochettino.
Freese delivered the most memorable performance of the night in Minneapolis. Facing a total of seven penalties, including Calvo`s in the first half, he guessed correctly on almost every attempt, saving nearly half and getting a touch on most others.
It was potentially a career-defining moment for the 26-year-old goalkeeper, who perhaps found himself in the starting role somewhat unexpectedly at the Gold Cup. Coach Pochettino appeared keen to evaluate various options this month, bringing first-choice goalkeeper Matt Turner but choosing not to play him so far. The role might have gone to Patrick Schulte of the Columbus Crew or Zack Steffen of the Colorado Rapids, both of whom were expected to be part of the squad but withdrew due to injuries before the tournament began. This opened the door for New York City FC`s Freese, who, while perhaps not consistently outstanding in regular play, quickly stated in a post-match interview that “penalties are my thing.”
Freese`s performance significantly boosted his credentials in what is becoming a competitive race for the goalkeeper spots ahead of the next World Cup. He demonstrated a genuinely valuable skillset, particularly his penalty-saving ability, which some other keepers in the pool have yet to consistently show. Freese has established himself as a penalty specialist, having won six out of the seven shootouts he has participated in during his career. This expertise could make him a valuable “break-glass-in-case-of-emergency” option next year, similar to how the Netherlands famously utilized Tim Krul in a shootout against Costa Rica at the 2014 World Cup.
While Freese was the clear standout, he wasn`t the only emerging USMNT player to strengthen his case for inclusion in future tournaments on Sunday. The player most anticipated to make a mark this summer was Luna. After a slow start to the Gold Cup, he finally had his moment in the spotlight with the crucial equalizer against Costa Rica. His goal was one of his three shots in the game, and he was a constant attacking threat as the U.S. kept Costa Rica`s defense busy for the first 50 minutes. Luna`s energetic and intense style made him a perfect fit for the team during that period. He had already impressed Pochettino months ago with his mindset, and the question was whether he could translate that mentality into significant on-field contributions. With his goal on Sunday, he`s starting to build his international statistics, which now stand at one goal and four assists in 10 matches.
Luna`s success suggests increasing competition for attacking midfield roles as the USMNT approaches the final year before the World Cup, particularly with Malik Tillman maintaining strong form and Gio Reyna facing limited playing time (e.g., on the bench).
A similar situation is developing at left back, although the competition there mirrors the goalkeeping situation – fighting for backup roles rather than the starting spots that Luna, Tillman, and Reyna might be contending for. Max Arfsten had an inconsistent performance on Sunday, but he also delivered several key moments, assisting Luna`s goal and scoring his own in the second half, creating a personal redemption arc after conceding a penalty in the 11th minute. The 24-year-old Arfsten was dynamic on the left wing during the USMNT`s strong start, setting up several chances for teammates and completing 83.3% of his passes in the attacking third.
His inexperience was evident at times, and it`s difficult to imagine him displacing Antonee Robinson, who has been consistently excellent for both Fulham and the USMNT in recent years. However, there`s an argument that Arfsten could be a better understudy than Joe Scally, who has struggled to fill Robinson`s role on previous occasions. Arfsten`s versatility, being able to play on both wings, is also a valuable asset.
USMNT`s Areas for Improvement
Arfsten`s performance serves as a microcosm of the USMNT`s overall showing – they made progress on Sunday, but visible imperfections remain. The high tempo displayed in the first 50 minutes was certainly a positive, resulting in 11 shots and two goals during that time. Their strategy for creating scoring opportunities was working, especially with Arfsten impacting the left flank, but there were numerous misconnections in the final third. Compounded by Tillman missing a penalty in the first half, their expected goals tally of 1.47 during that period left room for improvement.
The match also highlighted one of the USMNT`s persistent weaknesses: the lack of a consistently reliable goalscorer leading the attack. With Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi injured, and Josh Sargent currently out of favor, that responsibility has largely fallen to Patrick Agyemang. Like Luna, Agyemang had shown promise earlier in the year, but he has scored only one goal so far in the Gold Cup. On Sunday, he appeared out of sync with his teammates and hesitant on the ball, taking four shots but failing to put any on target.
A sense of disconnect was still palpable, which is understandable given the relative newness of the squad but also somewhat troubling. Building chemistry naturally takes time, but after nearly a month of training together, the first 50 minutes showed that their time together was beginning to yield results. However, after taking the lead, the team collectively slowed down. They took seven more shots but failed to land a single one on target, generating only 0.54 expected goals in the process. Notably, much of this came after Alonso Martinez`s equalizer in the 71st minute; there was actually a period from the 50th to the 65th minute where the USMNT didn`t take a single shot.
Heading into the semifinals, there`s still an incomplete feeling about this iteration of the USMNT, which is perhaps to be expected given the extensive list of high-profile players absent from the Gold Cup. It remains challenging to predict whether this group has what it takes to go all the way and win the tournament, although they will undoubtedly be heavy favorites in Wednesday`s semifinal against Guatemala, who reached the final four for the first time since 1996 after upsetting Canada. However, winning the Gold Cup is almost secondary this summer. Coach Pochettino`s primary objective was to identify talent that can integrate with the main squad later this year. He has certainly found potential new contributors, even if the trade-off is that he has also identified just as many issues that need to be addressed with only a year left until the World Cup.
