The United States men's national soccer team lost the Concacaf Nations League third-place game 2-1 to Canada on Sunday, ending a horrendous four-day stretch that started with the shock loss to Panama on Thursday in the semifinals. While Patrick Agyemang found the back of the net for the USMNT, it wasn't enough to offset goals from Tani Oluwaseyi and Jonathan David.
Jonathan David with a perfect left-footed strike to put Canada ahead at SoFi Stadium 💫 pic.twitter.com/4dpMVzn5ZS
— Golazo America (@GolazoAmerica) March 23, 2025
The USMNT needed a response after losing to Panama and they'll end a tournament that they expected to win with more questions than they entered it with. Canadian manager Jesse Marsch may have been red-carded during the second half but he'll be the happier of the two managers after the victory for the Canucks. The USMNT will now have their work cut out for them to find balance ahead of the 2026 World Cup as now the Concacaf Gold Cup, which will take place during the summer of 2025, has become a critical tournament for them.
For a passionate, unapologetic and informed discussion about the USMNT and the state of the American game catch the Call It What You Want podcast! Download and follow Call It What You Want on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts!
The new manager feel has now worn off for Mauricio Pochettino as this team needs to win, not only to restore their own confidence but also to live up to the expectations that have been set for them. USMNT star Christian Pulisic was marked out of the match by Canada and no one was able to step up to push the USMNT over the line. It wasn't all bad with Agyemang and Diego Luna showing that they belonged in the squad but defensive miscues and problems for this team have become commonplace over the past few years.
Now that other Concacaf teams aren't afraid of facing the USMNT on home soil, things are becoming tougher by the day. When this team doesn't have their first-choice XI performing, it shows. Moving forward, depth will be needed to progress, especially at the World Cup. With Sergino Dest, Folarin Balogun and Antonee Robinson expected to be available after missing out on CNL, the USMNT have had a major injury issue at almost every tournament that they've taken part in. Depth is needed to cope with that but with just over a year until the World Cup, time isn't on the USMNT's side to cultivate that as Pochettino needs wins now after failing to even get one this month when two were expected.
It's a disappointing result for the USMNT after they've now lost both games of Concacaf Nations Leauge play. They were outplayed by Canada during the match and plenty of work will need to be done to improve ahead of the World Cup in 2026.
A great ball in from Gio Reyna got knocked down in the box to Diego Luna but St. Clair made a massive save for Canada to maintain their one goal advantage as the clock ticks down.
Brian White is in at striker but the USMNT is passing between their defenders and struggling to penetrate Canada's defense as this match goes on. After a bright start in the first half for the USMNT, this has been poor.
Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie will all exit with Tanner Tessmann, Gio Reyna and Yunus Musah incoming. This will be Reyna's first appearance under Pochettino.
It's Jonathan David this time with a great line splitting pass from Ali Ahmed. David drew defenders out of their position before unleashing a wicked shot to beat Turner in net.
Jesse Marsch is all the way on the pitch to protest Canada not getting a penalty and he now will get a straight red card. Jonathan David went down in the box under his own power with a chance on goal and now Canada will have to go on without their manager.
Marlon Fossey will enter at right back replacing Joe Scally. This is Fossey's first camp under Pochettino as he's a right back who will push the pace more than Scally does from the back.
Still plenty of room for improvement from the USMNT but they'll take being level at the break after poor defense gifted Canada a goal. Diego Luna has been bright in midfield making things happen in space and the USMNT is already playing with more intensity than they showed against Panama but things need to be cleaner. Putting together more cohesive attacking movements could see this match get out of sight quickly.
There it is, after winning the ball back, Tim Weah plays Diego Luna into space and Patrick Agyemang wouldn't miss from in front of net. This is one that will be a huge sigh of relief for this team.
After a turnover in midfield, the ball eventually squirted to Canadian striker Tani Oluwaseyi. David had the first chance but that's the type of goal that the USMNT shouldn't be conceding as someone needs to take control and clear the ball out of the box.
While the chance was offside, he was there to stop Kone's chance in the box. After not seeing much action facing Panama, it's clear that Matt Turner will be tested today.
Alphonso Davies came into the match with a knock and he'll now exit before playing 15 minutes. It's a big loss for Canada as Niko Sigur will replace him in the lineup. Alistair Johnston will move over to left back after the shift.
Mark McKenzie was there to clean things up but Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan were able to get into space. It has been a stop and start match so far.
There are a few fouls going back and forth as each team wants to show their physical side in the early stages of the game. It could be a matter of time until a yellow card pops out for persistent infringement.
This may not be the Conacacaf Nations Leauge final but as Jesse Marssch and Mauricio Pochettino meet, this will be a very important match.
In a close fought match, depth will work in the USMNT's favor as they'll have just enough in the tank to win this one late. Pick: USMNT 2, Canada 1
Speaking of balance, an easy way to get some of that back is with a back four including players in their natural positions. Joe Scally was mostly fine as a third center back or left back, but Yunus Musah as a wing back left much to be desired on the creative front. It's not a knock to Musah, because that's not his game, but when USMNT systems have relied on fullbacks pushing the pace no matter who the manager is, it would be good to let the fullbacks be fullbacks and trust that the midfield can cover for any mistakes that happen because of that.
With Tyler Adams back, the USMNT has a lot of room for error defensively because with his awareness on the pitch, he has no issues adjusting and filling space when needed. There was a sequence early where Chris Richards lost the ball and in seconds Adams was there to make a defensive intervention to make sure it didn't end up in a goal. Being guaranteed to have one of the best midfielders on the pitch in any Concacaf match, there's no need to approach a match in a conservative manner because that allows teams to feel like they are still in the game which is when goals like Panama's stunning winner can happen.
The USMNT has to come out of the gate quickly and force errors from their opposition before they can settle into a match. It's easy to forget how much ground Adams can cover because of how long he has been in and out with injuries over the past few years, but with him back and healthy, it's a good chance for the USMNT to use his strengths to up the tempo in attack.
While Canada have been performing like one of Concacaf's best teams, defeating the United States is critical for them to truly be treated like one of the best in the region. Like the USMNT, most of their top players are now in major European leagues, but these matches are critical because after struggling at the 2022 World Cup, it's up to Marsch to show that this time will be different. If Canada can build on a strong showing at the Copa America by defeating the United States, it could truly begin to signal a shift in power.
After a disappointing match versus Panama, Mauricio Pochettino has rang in the changes to the starting XI. With six changes it's an XI that will be poised to show what they can do on the big stage.
USMNT Starting XI: 1-Matt Turner; 2-Cameron Carter-Vickers, 4-Tyler Adams, 5-Max Arfsten, 8-Weston McKennie, 10-Christian Pulisic (Capt.) 14-Diego Luna; 16-Patrick Agyemang, 19-Joe Scally, 20-Mark McKenzie, 21-Tim Weah
Substitutes: 18-Patrick Schulte, 3-Chris Richards, 6-Yunus Musah,7-Gio Reyna, 9-Josh Sargent, 11-Tanner Tessmann, 12-Jack McGlynn, 13-Tim Ream, 17-Marlon Fossey, 23-Brian White
Pressure will be on the USMNT to perform today after losing to Panama and Mauricio Pochettino has rang in the changes with only five players keeping their spots in the starting XI to face Canada. Patrick Agyemang will get a chance to lead the line for the USMNT while Diego Luna also comes into the midfield as the road to the 2026 World Cup continues.
![[object Object] Logo](https://sportshub.cbsistatic.com/i/2020/04/22/e9ceb731-8b3f-4c60-98fe-090ab66a2997/screen-shot-2020-04-22-at-11-04-56-am.png)