The United States beat Costa Rica 3-0 on Wednesday for its second win in two games against a team full of MLS players during the United States’ annual January camp.
Vancouver Whitecaps striker Brian White opened the scoring for the United States, beating Esteban Alvarado after Diego Luna set him into the area with an incisive through ball.
White, who turns 29 on February 3, becomes the oldest American to score his first international goal since 29-year-old Matt Besler in 2016.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side, who won against Venezuela in another friendly on Saturday, needed a big save from Jack Steffen late in the first half to maintain a 1-0 lead at half-time.
Steffen came back big for Team USA in the second half, with Caden Clark and Patrick Agyemang scoring two outstanding goals late in the game to put the game away.
“He was really, really good,” Pochettino said of Steffen. “Some of the saves were amazing. He showed his quality as a goalkeeper.”
It was the second goal in as many games for Agyemang, who scored in his debut for the United States in a 3-0 win over Venezuela.
As a result, former Mexico coach Miguel Herrera suffered a loss in his first game since taking office as Costa Rica coach.
Pochettino is scheduled to go into action by leading the U.S. team in the Concacaf Nations League finals to be held in March. Here, Team USA will try to remain the only team to win the competition since its inception in 2019.
“Including non-traditional players in the national team is very useful and gives us new information about the actual level of those players,” Pochettino said after the game.
“They are talented players with the ability to understand different ideas and adapt quickly, and I think that will help us make better decisions in the future and create a balanced squad for future competitions. “
The United States begins its Nations League match against Panama on March 20 at Sofay Stadium in Los Angeles.
Europe-based players can take part in the Nations League, one of only six training camps with a top pool ahead of the players’ arrival ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Steffen was one of eight changes to the starting line-up for Saturday’s win, while defender Myles Robinson, who was among the three retainers, made his first international start at right-back.
Central defenders Tim Lim and Walker Zimmerman, left defender Dejuan Jones, midfielder Luna, and wingers Indiana Vasilev and White were added to the lineup. Lim and Zimmerman are the first non-goalkeepers over the age of 30 to start since Lim and Michael Bradley in 2019.
This summary uses information from the Associated Press.
