Another Test, Another Win: 4 Takeaways From USA’s Victory Over Chile

Three days after defeating Peru in Florida, the US men’s national team overcame a tougher test against a formidable South American foe.

World Cup veterans and up-and-coming youngsters combined to lead the USA past Chile in a 4-2 victory on Tuesday in St. Louis.

Chris Richards nodded home a Sebastian Berhalter corner with about 20 minutes left to help seal a 4-2 victory over Chile in Tuesday’s exhibition game in St. Louis. Earlier, teenage striker Julian Hall scored the equalizer for the USA less than three minutes after La Roja had taken their first lead of the game with a long-range strike from Maximiliano Gutiérrez. Berhalter, who also scored in the 4-1 win over the Peruvians, opened the hosts’ account late in the first half after being set up by Sergiño Dest.

Mathis Albert added the exclamation point deep into second-half stoppage time, becoming the youngest scorer in program history in the process at 17 years, four months and eight days, breaking the record set by Christian Pulisic a decade earlier.

The Stars and Stripes take on arch-rival Mexico on Saturday in Glendale, Arizona in the third of four late September/early October “friendly” matches before closing out this FIFA window against Canada next week.

Here are my suggestions:

While almost everything that could have gone right for the Americans against Peru did, the Chileans were expected to offer more resistance. They did. Although the USA dominated most of the first 45 minutes, the visitors had the better of the game both late in the first half – scoring their equalizer in stoppage time – and early in the second half. With a deliberately young and inexperienced roster in this, the first international match of the 2030 FIFA World Cup cycle, it would have been easy for Mauricio Pochettino’s side to be overwhelmed.

Instead, they pulled the level almost immediately; Just 2:35 passed between Gutiérrez’s screamer and Hall’s answer, which was made possible by another inch-perfect serve from Gio Reyna. With the momentum back in their favor and 2026 World Cup starters Richards, Tyler Adams, Alex Freeman and Malik Tillman all brought on by Pochettino just after the hour mark, a USA win felt inevitable. And it was.

“You saw the second half, how the guys dug in. They dug deep,” Berhalter said. “Scoring one goal against a good team and scoring two more is what it’s all about.”

The 18-year-old Red Bull New York forward won the opener on the strength of his debut goal last weekend, but he looked very much like a player making his second appearance at the top level early in Tuesday’s game when he missed two golden opportunities in the first half. But Hall made no mistake when Reyna picked him off with a curling pass from the left wing, becoming the youngest player in the century-old history of the American program to score in each of his first two games.

“It’s been great sharing the court with some great players,” Hall told the TNT crew afterward. “They put me in the right spots and I’m just doing as much as I can to put them away.”

Pochettino split the first leg this month evenly between World Cup starter Matt Freese and Barcelona prospect Diego Kochen. On Tuesday, he gave 45 minutes to Chris Brady — the No. 3 behind Freese and summer veteran Matt Turner — and 25-year-old rookie Brian Schwake. Through two games of the 2030 cycle, the Argentine coach has almost as many back-to-backs (four) as he had during his nearly two years in charge of the USA (five).

Loosen the numbers to take the money against the Mexicans in what will effectively be an away game at 63-000-seat State Farm Stadium. But Brady played well against Chile, making five saves. Schwake was flawless in Gutiérrez’s breakout, and Kochen has the highest ceiling of all. It will be interesting to see how the competition plays out over the next week.

Albert didn’t start either game, but still managed to make a big impact. Does Poch see what the kid can do in Concacaf’s SuperClasico? What about the other 17-year-old Cavan Sullivan, who came off the bench against Chile? With no top striker available this month, will Hall keep his place against El Tri, or will 19-year-old Justin Ellis return to the former Chelsea and Tottenham manager’s XI? Common sense says Pochettino will prioritize experience against Mexico, a team he is 0-2 against so far in the top-flight. But it’s also clear that he believes in kids, so don’t be surprised if a couple of them pop up.

Richards said: “It’s going to be a lot of fun to see these young guys get involved in a real Mexico game.”

“This is never a friendly, and I think everyone knows that,” added Berhalter. “That was a good test, but Mexico is a different deal.”