<figure id="attachment_3213442" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-3213442" style="width: 1600px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-3213442" src="https://media.freemalaysiatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/dcc71780-epa11656770-us-head-coach-mauricio-pochettino-waves-after-a-victory-following-the-friendly-soccer-match-between-the-us-and-panama-in-austin-texas-usa-12-oct.-2024.-epa_dustin-safranek-19112025.webp" alt="" width="1600" height="1000" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-3213442" class="wp-caption-text">US head coach Mauricio Pochettino waves after the US beat Uruguay in the friendly match. (EPA Images pic)</figcaption></figure>
LOS ANGELES: The US scored their most impressive win of Mauricio Pochettino&#8217;s reign with a 5-1 thrashing of Uruguay in an international friendly on Tuesday.
A first-half goal blitz from Pochettino&#8217;s side laid the foundations for an emphatic victory in Tampa against Marcelo Bielsa&#8217;s overwhelmed Uruguay line-up.
World Cup co-hosts the US raced into a 4-0 lead just before half-time thanks to a goal from Sebastian Berhalter, two goals from Alex Freeman and a 42nd-minute strike from Diego Luna.
Although Giorgian de Arrascaeta pulled a goal back in first-half stoppage time for Uruguay, Pochettino&#8217;s team completed the rout with a 68th-minute Tanner Tessmann goal.
It was the first time the US has ever scored five goals against a World Cup-winning nation and was further evidence that Pochettino&#8217;s squad is on an upward curve after a bumpy start to the Argentine coach&#8217;s reign.
US goalscorer Berhalter, the son of former US coach Gregg Berhalter, had set the ball rolling with a sensational strike in the 17th minute, curling a sweetly struck shot into the far corner after a cleverly worked free kick routine.
&#8220;We wanted to make a statement,&#8221; Sebastian Berhalter said afterwards.
&#8220;We wanted to show what US soccer is about. We had a chance to go out here and give everything we had and we were ready against a good Uruguay team,&#8221; the Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder added.
&#8220;We just wanted to make the fans happy – to give them something to believe in and hopefully tonight we went out there and did that.&#8221;

MatchPoint Times

US thrash Uruguay 5-1 in friendly rout

The win reinforced Mauricio Pochettino’s squad’s upward trajectory after the Argentine coach’s shaky early period.

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