Pulisic Hat Trick Puts USMNT on Cusp of World Cup Berth

The U.S. men’s national team won’t be able to qualify for the World Cup until its final Concacaf Octagonal match, but it has done everything in its power to ensure that it would take unprecedented catastrophe—yes, even after what happened in the last cycle—to prevent a trip to Qatar in November from happening.

The U.S. routed Panama, 5–1, in Orlando, Fla., with Christian Pulisic’s first international hat trick pacing the Americans in a match they had to win. With Costa Rica beating El Salvador 2–1 in an earlier match on Sunday, the U.S. knew that it could not completely punch its ticket to Qatar with a win. Regardless, a triumph over Panama put the U.S. all but in the World Cup and was necessary to ensure that qualification doesn’t come down to securing a positive outcome in Costa Rica, where the U.S. is winless all-time in World Cup qualifying. With three goals in the opening 27 minutes, through Pulisic, Paul Arriola and Jesús Ferreira, that triumph was well on its way to being achieved early. Pulisic tacked on two more to pad the U.S.’s goal-differential, which will matter entering the finale in San José. With the U.S. 10 goals clear of Costa Rica in that department, it would take a six-goal defeat (or worse) to miss the World Cup.

This isn’t entirely new territory for the U.S., which hosted Panama in Orlando in the second-to-last match in qualifying in the last cycle, too, and it went rather well then also. A 4–0 triumph, in which the-then-19-year-old Pulisic scored the opener, had put the U.S. in prime position to qualify, only for the wheels to fall off in Trinidad & Tobago (and simultaneous matches elsewhere that worked against the U.S.’s favor). Now, a hefty win at the very least expands the margin of error a great deal—and ensures the U.S. can do no worse than a fourth-place finish and playoff against Oceania’s qualifying champion. For Panama, its World Cup dream is over, as it has been eliminated from contention for a top-four finish.

The U.S. was severely shorthanded Sunday. Sergiño Dest, Weston McKennie and Matt Turner were all out injured, while Tim Weah and DeAndre Yedlin were suspended due to card accumulation and Reggie Cannon was out after testing positive for COVID-19 in Mexico. That left the U.S. on its fourth-choice right back, with Gold Cup champion Shaq Moore joining the group in Florida as a late replacement. Moore’s last qualifying appearance came in October in Panama, where Los Canaleros dealt the U.S. a 1–0 defeat. It marked the first time Panama had ever beaten the U.S. in World Cup qualifying and just the third win for the Central American nation in all-time meetings, with the other two coming in the Gold Cup.

Moore jumped right into the starting lineup, joining Arriola, Luca de la Torre and Ferreira as the changes coach Gregg Berhalter made from Mexico. According to Fox Sports, a few U.S. players, including Gio Reyna, got a stomach bug after Thursday’s 0–0 draw. Reyna is available off the bench, though.

Panama, knowing that it would be eliminated from contention with defeat, came out pressing the U.S. high, and it took a few minutes before the hosts could establish some semblance of control on the ball.

Panama continued to look the better of the two sides in the opening segment of the match, though, and Houston Dynamo midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla nearly opened the scoring in sensational fashion, with a clearance attempt falling right to him some 30 yards from goal, where he attempted a volley that whizzed over the bar.

That seemed to wake the U.S. up. On the other end, Pulisic had the first dangerous moment for the Americans, having his half-chance just inside the Panama box blocked. Soon after, Ferreira found Moore streaking down the right with a deft touch, and the right back drew a foul in a dangerous area. Pulisic’s subsequent free kick sailed over the bar, after taking a deflection off the top of the Panama wall.

On one of two corner kicks that followed, Walker Zimmerman took a vicious shove to the face from Anibal Godoy, and at the following stoppage, a penalty was given following a VAR review.

Pulisic stepped to the spot and powered home the penalty, giving the U.S. the early lead.

Panama nearly equalized almost immediately after. Antonee Robinson’s giveaway in the back gifted the visitors a chance, with a cross narrowly touched but mostly missed by Zack Steffen in the U.S. goal. Zimmerman got a slight touch on the ground to clear the immediate danger, and the U.S. ultimately ushered the ball to safety without conceding on the chaotic sequence.

Robinson made up for that turnover right away, as, with Pulisic down but the advantage played, the left back delivered a cross for Arriola, who caught some big air on heading in the U.S.’s second of the night.

The U.S. didn’t let up there. With goal differential potentially a major factor in the finale on Wednesday, the U.S. did well to pad its total in that category, as Arriola set up his FC Dallas teammate, Ferreira, for a close-range finish and a 3–0 lead. It was the first goal by a U.S. center forward since Ricardo Pepi’s goal vs. Jamaica in October.

Just when Panama thought it could escape the first half by being down just 3–0, it was whistled for another penalty deep into stoppage time. After a whiffed clearance, Godoy put an arm into Miles Robinson’s face on his attempt to win a bouncing ball. Pulisic once again took the U.S.’s PK, and even with Luis Mejia guessing correctly, Pulisic had enough power and placement on his take to make to 4–0.

Pulisic’s eventful first half continued just before the whistle, with the Chelsea star getting into it with Panama’s players and bench before Tyler Adams stepped in to pull him away and cool him down. 

The U.S. made two changes at halftime, with Kellyn Acosta and Gio Reyna coming on for Yunus Musah and Arriola, the latter of which took a shot to the face in the first half and spent some time down before finishing out the opening 45. It didn’t take long for Reyna to make an impact, as he pulled a shot just wide mere minutes into the second half.

Panama, with its World Cup hopes on life support, kept pushing to try to chip away, and if not for Adams, perhaps the visitors would’ve pulled one back, but the RB Leipzig midfielder timed a sliding block to perfection to help keep the U.S. unscathed in the 53rd minute. 

With Panama committing numbers forward, there was plenty of space to run into on the counter, and the U.S. came close to adding a fifth. Reyna played Pulisic down the left-hand side, and his shot attempt wound up being a cross to Ferreira at the far post. The forward’s ball across the goalmouth was then cleared.

The U.S. kept knocking, with Ferreira nearly scoring a second after a filthy set up from Reyna and de la Torre, only to fire his chance over the bar.

The U.S.’s fifth came soon enough. Pulisic, after scoring on two PKs, took on Panama’s defense for a sensational third, completing his first career USMNT hat trick in spectacular fashion to extend the lead.

Pulisic and Adams came off in the 71st minute, as Berhalter looked to give his studs a bit of extra rest with the result in hand, but Panama did manage to spoil the clean sheet late. Godoy made up for one of the conceded penalties by heading in from a free kick, making it 5–1 on the night and denting the U.S.’s goal differential just a bit but hardly denting the optimism, with a World Cup return within reach.