The U.S. men’s national team made its long-awaited return to the World Cup stage on Monday, letting a potential win slip away due to a contribution from Wales’s danger man.
Tim Weah’s 36th-minute goal had the U.S. leading Wales in the Americans’ first World Cup match in eight years, only for Gareth Bale to score on an 82nd-minute penalty that pulled Wales level and salvaged a draw for the Dragons. With England beating Iran 6–2 earlier in the day, both sides trail the Three Lions in Group B after one match.
The U.S. infamously missed out on the 2018 World Cup by failing to qualify and spent the last four years rebuilding the program and centering the national team on a nucleus of young players, many of whom are playing in the top leagues in Europe. But if eight years between World Cups seems like a while for the U.S., consider Wales, which last reached the World Cup in 1958. For some, that 64-year wait was an eternity, but in Bale, the Dragons have one of the most accomplished and clutch players in the competition, and he came through after being fouled by Walker Zimmerman.
Two of the biggest injury doubts for the U.S., Weston McKennie and Sergiño Dest, both were given starts by manager Gregg Berhalter. The coach also turned to veteran Tim Ream to partner with Zimmerman in central defense, while Josh Sargent got the start at center forward. With a logjam of healthy attackers, Gio Reyna and Brenden Aaronson began the match on the bench.
While there was no goal after 30 seconds, like Clint Dempsey’s in the 2014 opener, the U.S. did earn an early opportunity in the attacking third. Christian Pulisic earned a foul with his first touch, setting the U.S. up for a free kick in a dangerous spot, but Pulisic couldn’t do much with his delivery, firing it right into Wales’s first line of defense.
The U.S. earned a corner four minutes in, with Pulisic’s service considerably better, only for Wales to clear the danger, but regardless, in the opening stages of the match, the U.S. dominated the ball, passed sharply and looked to play the ball into space behind Wales’s organized defense.
The U.S. nearly forced an own goal in the ninth minute. Weah blasted in a cross from the right, which came off Joe Rodon’s head and was earmarked for goal, only for an unknowing Wayne Hennessey to make the save. Hennessey made a massive save moments later, robbing Sargent of a near-post header off Antonee Robinson’s cross as the U.S. kept its attack alive.
In the minutes that followed, the U.S. saw two key players picking up yellow cards, with Dest and McKennie rapidly going into the book. With players suspended after receiving two, it’s another factor for the players to keep in mind in a physical game.
After the U.S.’s more dominant opening, play leveled out and became a bit more tense, with Wales seeing more of the ball, and the U.S. picking its spots when to press and when to let the Dragons try to find space to play out of the back.
The next U.S. foray forward came in the 23rd minute, with Pulisic finding Robinson overlapping into the left side of the box. The Fulham fullback had his cross into the center of the box cleared to safety, though.
With chances remaining at a premium, Dest tried his chance from long range in the 29th minute. Yunus Musah sparked the sequence by bypassing a pair of Welsh midfielders before finding Dest out to his right. The AC Milan fullback, who has shown a penchant for spectacular goals from distance, had a go, but put his shot well over Hennessey’s crossbar.
The U.S.’s patience and persistence paid off in the 36th minute. After Sargent held up the ball, Pulisic was able to streak down the center, finding Weah, who timed his run perfectly. Weah touched the ball off the outside of his boot to beat Hennessey and give the U.S. a 1-0 lead.
Wales made one significant change at halftime, bringing 6’5” forward Kieffer Moore on for Dan James. The Bournemouth forward is a handful to wrangle on aerial chances, entering the World Cup in good scoring form with three goals in his last three club matches, and his presence was a factor on a corner kick in the 49th minute, although the U.S. cleared the danger.
Wales continued to pressure over the first quarter hour of the second half, beginning to seize some of the control and momentum from the U.S. None of that turned into chances that troubled goalkeeper Matt Turner, but there was a sense of the tide turning.
Turner was finally tested in the 64th minute, and he passed with flying colors. After the U.S. had trouble clearing from its own box, Ben Davies got a free header from the center of the box, but Turner reacted perfectly to tip it over the bar. On the ensuring corner kick Moore got a free chance, but he couldn’t direct it on frame.
With things starting to slip away a bit, Berhalter turned to his bench for the first time, bringing Aaronson on for McKennie in the 66th minute.
Three more U.S. players entered seven minutes later, with Kellyn Acosta, DeAndre Yedlin and Haji Wright replacing Musah, Dest and Sargent.
The U.S. was coasting toward victory until the 82nd minute, when Zimmerman fouled Bale from behind in the U.S. box. Bale made no mistake from the spot, beating Turner with a thumper of a left-footed penalty kick to make it 1-1.
Turner was called into action in the 89th minute after Brennan Johnson was played through by Moore’s deft back-heel. The U.S. defense recovered to force Johnson to a tighter angle, and all he could do was put his shot right into Turner’s chest.
After nine minutes of stoppage time, neither side could find a winner, and the sides shared a point apiece. The U.S. next plays on Friday, when it takes on England, while Wales will face Iran.
