The US Men’s National Team secured a morale-boosting draw against Brazil on Wednesday in its final warm-up game ahead of the Copa América.
Christian Pulisic equalized midway through the first half for the US after Rodrygo’s 17th-minute opener in front of 60,016 crowd at Camping World Stadium, Orlando.
The draw comes after a humbling 5-1 defeat for the US against Colombia just a few days ago, and ahead of the Copa América – South America’s top men’s international tournament which in recent years has incorporated teams from North America and Asia.
“We asked for teamwork and intensity,” US Men’s National Team head coach Gregg Berhalter told reporters afterwards, per ESPN. “The way we framed it is two things that are totally in their control.
“It doesn’t matter about the opponent, it doesn’t matter about the field, the fans or anything. That’s the type of effort that we saw today. The boys certainly did really well on that and that was good. We feel like we made a little step.”
Berhalter added: “It’s not a huge step, but it’s a little step to be able to play against an amazingly talented Brazil team and bend but not break. And give them problems as well, push them as well. So for us, looking at it, we think it’s a good end to a preparation camp when we’re ready for Copa [América].”
Unlike the disappointing result against Colombia – which Berhalter called a “wake-up call” – the US was much livelier against Brazil from the opening exchanges.