Good news guys, the USMNT is capable of beating Grenada. It’s hard to take too much away from the U.S. defeating Grenada 5-0 in the Concacaf Nations League on Friday, but we have a couple players to highlight for the USMNT.
Head coach Gregg Berhalter put out the B-team for the USMNT, reasonably so, and fans got to see some fringe players try to prove their worth. Christian Pulisic and Tyler Adams didn’t even dress for the team Friday night to give you an idea of how important this game was.
3 Stars vs. Grenada
Jesús Ferreira
It’s hard to criticize a player that scored four goals in a game. Ferreira had chance after chance on goal he was practically shooting fish in a barrel. The good news is that he buried four of those chances with some clean finishes and a banger.
The USMNT finally get the opening goal against Grenada through Jesus Ferreira! pic.twitter.com/vRGzKFZQJ5
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) June 11, 2022
No. ✌️ for @Jesusfcd27 pic.twitter.com/qxbpQ1qpDS
— USMNT (@USMNT) June 11, 2022
JESUS FERREIRA HAT TRICK!
Welcome to the @Jesusfcd27 show(via @USMNT)
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 11, 2022
A night he won’t forget ✨
@Jesusfcd27 scores his 4️⃣th goal of the night!(via @USMNT)
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 11, 2022
This will help with Ferreira’s confidence after he had two less than stellar performances against Morocco and Uruguay. Scoring a hat trick plus one against Grenada isn’t going to win someone the starting No. 9 role, but it’s nice to know that a center forward/striker on this team can actually score.
Luca de la Torre
Luca de la Torre was the USMNT’s best player on the field Friday night. The 24-year-old was an absolute joy to watch and was extremely confident on the ball throughout the game. He also had a plethora of dangerous passes including the assist for the fourth goal.
.@PaulArriola bags our fourth of the night! pic.twitter.com/bGtXpv8nnE
— USMNT (@USMNT) June 11, 2022
Luca de la Torre is seriously putting himself in contention for a starting spot at the World Cup. The midfield for the U.S. will most likely be Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams and Yunus Musah, but de la Torre will definitely make appearances off the bench.
Kellyn Acosta
Acosta is the reserve role behind Adams, but the LAFC man does offer something in attack. If the U.S. finds itself in a close game and has a set piece opportunity it will be great to have Acosta taking it. He also had several dangerous through passes and was solid overall.
Didn’t Impress vs. Grenada
Weston McKennie
Nobody panic or freak out, the USMNT maestro midfielder is still working his way back to being 100%. McKennie looked lethargic and just not into the game for his 45 minutes on Friday. McKennie has a ticket to Qatar and hopefully Friday was a fluke game for him.
Jordan Morris
It hurts to say it, but Morris struggled against Grenada. He had several good looks and failed to make anything of his chances. His trip to Qatar is in serious question as he is falling down the USMNT pecking order.
Morris featured for 60 minutes.
Matt Turner And The Defense?
Grenada didn’t have a single shot on target… Matt Turner looked pretty, I guess. Cameron Carter-Vickers went the full 90 minutes. Aaron Long started for the USMNT and split halves with Walker Zimmerman. Not too much to report against Grenada’s offense.
Honorable Mentions
Malik Tillman
Brenden Aaronson
Paul Arriola