The United States men’s soccer team claimed a promising 3-2 victory against Senegal during a World Cup preparation friendly match on Sunday, with Christian Pulisic contributing a goal and an assist while Folarin Balogun netted the decisive second-half score.
Sergino Dest opened the scoring for the Americans in the seventh minute, converting Pulisic’s delivery from the left side. Pulisic then extended the lead in the 20th minute, calmly finishing from a difficult angle after getting past the Senegal goalkeeper.
Senegal’s captain Sadio Mane pulled one back just before the break, completing a swift counterattack following Habib Diarra’s pass that broke through the U.S. defense.
Early in the second period, Balogun thought he had scored but the goal was disallowed due to an offside call. Mane then took advantage of an American defensive mistake to level the match at 2-2 in the 52nd minute.
The AS Monaco forward made amends shortly after the hour mark, connecting with Tim Weah’s delivery to give Mauricio Pochettino’s team the winning goal.
The United States, which will jointly host the World Cup with Canada and Mexico, has one remaining preparation match against Germany on Saturday before beginning their Group D schedule against Paraguay on June 12.
Senegal will start their Group I competition against France on June 16, with Iraq and Norway also in their group.
