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The USA played their final tune-up game before the CONCACAF Nations League, as they took on South American giants, Uruguay, in Missouri. The game came on the heels of the humiliating 3-0 loss to Mexico last week, and Gregg Berhalter's men came into the game seeking to banish memories of that loss.
Both sides went into the game without a host of their best players, as the likes of Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, and John Brooks didn't feature for the Yanks. Meanwhile, Oscar Tabarez had to do without Edinson Cavani, Diego Godin, and Luis Suarez due to injuries.
The game was a comedy of errors of sorts up front, as both sides missed wave after wave of goal scoring opportunities. The match had a total of 26 shots, with both sides hitting the target a mere 7 times overall.
The deadlock was broken in the second half thanks to Brian Rodriguez in the 50th minute, as he sweetly blasted the ball home for his first international goal in his second cap for Uruguay. Lady luck, however, came to the rescue of the USMNT in the 79th minute, as Jordan Morris was on hand to tap in the equaliser from a deflected clearance which fell sweetly to him in the goalmouth.
It was a decent showing in the end, as both teams were always expected to struggle somewhat in front of goal. In this article, we analyse reasons why the sides drew the game.
#3 Notable absentees
This one was pretty obvious. Gregg Berhalter went into the game without a host of crucial players, as Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, etc, weren't in the matchday squad. Without the invention of a player like Pulisic, not much was expected upfront for the USA, and that's what unfolded.
Oscar Tabarez was also without the services of Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani upfront, two men that certainly need no introduction. Uruguay struggled to find the target throughout the game, as just 3 attempts managed to trouble the American goalie.
In the end, it was a decent result, as many sides would struggle in the absence of players in the calibre of the aforementioned athletes.
#2 Lots of missed opportunities
Despite the absence of several big-name players, both sides did manage to create a host of opportunities, however, they struggled to hit the target consistently. The Americans had the lion's share of possession, as they were on the ball 60 per cent of the match.
Despite all that possession, the Americans were tame upfront with 11 shots in total, and a paltry 4 on target. The Uruguayans also missed a boatload of opportunities, as just 3 of their 15 shots managed to trouble Brad Guzan in goal.
With a little bit of level-headedness upfront, we might have perhaps witnessed a goal fest on both ends of the pitch.
#1 Lady luck was in attendance
Both sides undoubtedly had a rub of the green in this one. In the first half, the Uruguayans were let off the hook, as a clear handball by Jose Gimenez was overlooked by the officials, denying the Americans a penalty and potential lead going into half time. That would have turned the tide firmly in favour of the USMNT.
Deep in the second half, fortune smiled on the Yanks as well, with Jordan Morris on hand to poach the ball close to the goal-mouth, as he received a fortuitous deflection off an Uruguayan defensive clearance to send the ball beyond the fingertips of Fernando Muslera.
