Mauricio Pochettino praised the fearless display of his youth United States side after an emphatic 4-1 win over Peru in Orlando, admitting that watching his teenage debutants gave him “goosebumps at times”.
Kicking off the four-year run to the 2030 World Cup at the Inter&Co Stadium, Pochettino backed up his promise of a clean sheet by giving opportunities to emerging talent, handing senior international debuts to 11 players, including eight teenagers who featured throughout the 90 minutes.
Speaking after the game, Pochettino praised the commitment, maturity and tactical energy shown by a team led on the pitch by returning captain Tyler Adams and playmaker Malik Tillman.
He said: “I’m really proud of the performance. To see these young players come in, embrace the moment and play with that kind of freedom and courage, it gave me goosebumps at times.
“It’s about opportunities — given the opportunity, and then they have to take it. What we saw tonight is that the future is here, but football is today. They showed they can compete right now.”
Sullivan’s historic night
Headline attention naturally focused on 16-year-old Philadelphia Union talent Cavan Sullivan, who started and played a spirited 60 minutes to become the youngest player to earn a senior USMNT cap since Freddy Adu in 2006.
Alongside Sullivan, Orlando City’s Justin Ellis and New England Revolution winger Peyton Miller were also named in the starting eleven.
It only took four minutes for this policy to pay off in front of the local audience. After winning a set piece on the right, Ellis rose inside the box to head home a perfect free kick from Gio Reyna to open the scoring.
While veteran striker Gianluca Lapadula restored parity for Peru midway through the first half by heading home Yoshimar Yotún’s close-range delivery, Pochettino’s teenagers took complete command after the break.
The breakthrough came midway through the second half when Crystal Palace prospect Zavier Gozo made an incisive, driven run into the 18-yard box to draw a clumsy free-kick, which allowed Tillman to step up and calmly convert the resulting spot-kick.
Moments later, the hosts doubled their lead when New York Red Bulls youngster Julian Hall drove in at the far post, showing predatory instincts to volley home from six yards for a dream debut goal. The rout was completed in the final minute of normal time when substitute Sebastian Berhalter latched on to a loose clearance and drilled a clinical finish past Pedro Gallese to make it 4-1.
Pochettino, who committed his future to US soccer through the 2030 tournament, reiterated that past pedigree counts for little in the new cycle:
“No one can think that their place belongs to them because of what they did in the past. It’s a new beginning, a new cycle. Everyone has an open door, but you have to earn it every day.”
