AP, Dhaka :
In his final match as U.S. soccer coach, Dave Sarachan gave Christian Pulisic the captain’s arm band for the first time and sent out the youngest lineup since the American team started keeping records.
Matteo Politano scored his first international goal in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time, and Italy beat the United States 1-0 in an exhibition Tuesday night at Genk, Belgium, as Pulisic became the youngest captain since the American team’s records began in 1990.
Pulisic was the only holdover in the U.S. starting lineup from last Thursday’s 3-0 loss at England. At 20 years, 63 days, Pulisic bettered Landon Donovan, who was 22 years, 220 days when he first captained the Americans in a World Cup qualifier at El Salvador on Oct. 9, 2004, a match regular captain Claudio Reyna missed because of a quadriceps injury.
“It’s a huge honor. For the coaches, the staff, the team to trust me to be captain of the team, it means everything,” Pulisic said. “I was never a captain in my life and now to be for the United States men’s national team, it’s an incredible honor. It doesn’t matter what age you are. I will never forget this moment.” Before last week, Pulisic had played just once for the U.S. since the October 2017 defeat at Trinidad and Tobago that ended the Americans’ streak of seven straight World Cup appearances. He missed some games because of minor injuries, others to concentrate on his club career with Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
Coach Bruce Arena quit after the loss in Trinidad and was replaced on an interim basis by Sarachan, his top assistant. As the U.S. Soccer Federation restructured under new president Carlos Cordeiro, Sarachan transitioned to a younger roster and guided the Americans to three wins, five losses and four ties in 12 exhibitions.
“Well, it was my last game. I haven’t been told that, but it’s evident there’s going to be a change in the very near future,” Sarachan said. “To look back on the games that we played, the players that we’ve exposed to this level, that we brought forth, I’m certain it’s going to pay dividends down the line. So for me I feel as though when the next person comes in, they’re going to have a great starting point and that makes me feel good.”
