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The USMNT clinched their second consecutive Nations League title with a 2-0 victory over neighbors Canada, preventing Canada from winning their first trophy since 2000.

With goals from Chris Richards and Folarin Balogun in the inaugural Nations League, the Americans did it again and defended their title.

The Stars and Stripes took the lead after Gio Reyna’s powerful header from a corner. Since its inception, Canada has been under constant pressure, but failure to take advantage of it has come at the expense of America.

After the first game, Canada looked to equalize from wide areas of the field as Richie Laryea and Antonee Robinson struggled on the left, but the American defense held firm. On his second start for the USMNT after moving from England to FIFA, Folarin Balogun scored his first goal after Reyna played him with a perfect ball.

That night, the Dortmund man was in excellent form, scoring his second assist as the Stars and Stripes went up 2-0.

John Herdman made a tactical change by swapping wingers Alphonso Davies and Richie Laryea, but neither failed to show quality in attack. In the end, the USMNT turned out to be bigger than the Canadian team.

G: Milan Borjan – 5/10 – Made some good saves but could have done better on the first goal.

DC: Kamal Miller – 4/10 – Struggled to keep pace with Weah on the right flank.

DC: Scott Kennedy – 4/10 – USA targeted the defender and he had little success limiting Balogun.

DC: Alistair Johnston – 5/10 – Better than three central defenders for Canada, but still difficult against the American attack.

LM: Alphonso Davies – 5/10 – The region’s best player had a brilliant start to the game before being shifted to right midfield. I couldn’t juggle much past that point and got frustrated with the American defense.

WC: Jonathan Osorio – 4/10 – Especially a passer in midfield who does not help the Canadian team.

CM: Ismaël Koné – 7/10 – Made good moves in midfield but was not helped by other midfielders.

WC: Stephen Eustaquio – 4/10 – Somehow not getting a yellow card in the first half after doing some troublesome challenges. Impossible to follow Reyna and Musah in the middle of the park.

MD: Richie Laryea – 7/10 – Canadian of the best in the first half and created several chances.

ST: Cylé Larin – 5/10 – Barely scored in the first half before Antonee Robinson intervened at the last moment. Have a calm game other than those brief moments.

ST: Jonathan David – 5/10 – Not being able to do much because of the outstanding performance of the American defense.

Replacement

ST: Tajon Buchanan (61′ for Alistair Johnston) – 5/10 – Not able to provide many opportunities.

DC: Steven Vitoria (61′ to Scott Kennedy) – 6/10 – Helped stop the bleeding even though the US eased off.

CM: Sam Adekugbe (61′ for Jonathan Osorio) – 6/10 – Throw some good crosses that irritated the American defense.

ST: Lucas Cavallini (76′ for Cyle Larin) – N / A

AR: Junior Hoilett (89′ against Steven Eustaquio) – N / A

Director

Jean Herdmann – 6/10 – Picked a strong starting XI, but it wasn’t enough to defeat the United States. A flurry of substitutions seemed to help, but not enough to get back into the game.

Mexico vs USA: Semi-Finals – CONCACAF Nations League / Robin Alam/ISI Photos

GK: Matt Turner – 7/10 – Had a fairly quiet game but made some good saves to keep USA ahead.

LB: Antonee Robinson – 8/10 – His hands were full with Laryea and Davies, but he had a great defensive performance and was able to get on the pitch a few times.

DC: Chris Richards – 8/10 – Defended without Miles Robinson at his side and opened the scoring with a thundering header.

DC: Walker Zimmerman – 7/10 – Had a few shaky moments off the ball in the first half but was otherwise solid as a substitute for Miles Robinson.

AR: Joe Scally – 8/10 – Perfect fit for the match as he replaced the suspended Sergino Dest, facing Davies and Laryea as Robinson.

DM: Yunus Musah – 7/10 – Take turns in the middle of the garden, do the necessary dirty work.

DM: Brenden Aaronson – 6/10 – Has a calm but solid game despite a role he wouldn’t normally play.

LW: Christian Pulisic – 7/10 – He didn’t see as much time on the ball as he did against Mexico, but he still looked menacing going forward.

Morning: Gio Reyna – 9/10 – Hovered over everyone in midfield and was in charge of both goals. Playing right behind Balogun / as an attacking midfielder should be his position up front. Unlucky to be sent off in the first half through injury.

RW: Tim Weah – 8/10 – Again influential on the wing, causing problems for the Canadian defense and had a key header that led to second goal. He is also very good at coming back defensively.

ST: Folarin Balogun – 8/10 – His somewhat quiet debut game was nowhere to be seen as he scored his first goal in an American jersey.

Replacement

MD: Luca de la Torre (45′ to Gio Reyna) – 6/10 – Made good moves in midfield and cleared

MD: Johnny Cardoso (68′ to Brenden Aaronson) – 6/10 – Stuck with a few challenges to help relieve pressure from the defense.

ST: Ricardo Pepi (76′ for Folarin Balogun) – N / A

DC: Auston Trusty (79′ against Joe Scally) – N / A