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Christian Pulisic, USMNT Earn Draw vs. New Zealand as Fans Ready for Pochettino Era

John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images

The United States men's national team looked fairly lifeless through the first hour or so of Tuesday's friendly against New Zealand, a reminder that freshly-appointed head coach Mauricio Pochettino might indeed have his work cut out for him.

And then Christian Pulisic happened.

The USMNT's star winger, brought on as a substitute in the 57th minute, broke a scoreless deadlock in the 69th minute, providing his country with a spark in what was ultimately a 1-1 draw.

The good feelings didn't last long.

Just 20 minutes a series of defensive blunders squandered the USMNT's lead, with the look of anguish on Matt Turner's face reflected by American supporters tuning in:

And so fans and pundits alike were of two minds.