Pulisic helps USA punish TT

Both teams were desperate for full points to ignite their campaign after stuttering starts but looked sluggish playing 5000m above sea level in a first half that offered plenty action but no goals .

Pulisic, who plays for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga, showed he is a star in the making with great composure in the box in the second half to help lift USA provisionally to third in the CONCACAF hexagonal standings with seven points from five matches while TT are rooted to the bottom with one win and four losses .

TT started in a 4-5-1 formation with 38 year old Carlos Edwards at right-back but providing support down the flank with timely forays into the USA half. Pulisic, in what was likely an omen for TT , won the first corner of the match, dribbling past one player down the right before his cross was blocked .

USA were enjoying the majority of the ball and veterans Clint Dempsey and Jozy Altidore both fired efforts at TT ’s goal with Jan-Michael Williams having to get down low to save the latter’s shot. TT were hoping to catch their hosts on the break but the Americans played close attention to Seattle Sounders’ wing-back Joevin Jones while Khaleem Hyland’s long range speculative left-footer flew wide. But the Dennis Lawrence- coached TT should have been ahead 1-0 in the 32nd when Joevin on the left played a short pass to Kevin Molino who lifted a pass first time into the box where Kenwyne Jones drifted past a stagnant John Brooks but saw his header ricochet off the crossbar with Tim Howard in no man’s land .

TT goalie Jan-Michael Williams was working overtime, though, on the other end as TT did well to go into the half tied goalless. USA, urged on by their fans, came out with more energy in the second half and after a sloppy give-away by TT in the middle, USA’s DeAndre Yedlin and Darlington Nagbe combined to get behind the TT defence before Yedlin drilled the ball across the penalty box where Pulisic ghosted in to prod the ball in from pointblank range in the 52nd minute .

TT thought they had the equaliser a minute later when Carlos Edwards’ cross from the right found Nathan Lewis at the back post but the linesman flagged him offside .

Ten minutes later Pulisic, leading a counter-attack, showed great off the ball running to pass to Bradley and dart behind the TT defence where Jozy Altidore rewarded his movement with a defence splitting pass and the teen made no mistake in the box, beating Jan-Michael at his first post to put the match to rest .

Lawrence, looking for goals and to freshen up the team, replaced Joevin with forward Shahdon Winchester (68th), a weary Hyland with Leston Paul (76th) and Kenwyne with Jamille Boatswain (82nd) but TT could not get near as their poor streak on American soil continued .