3 things we learned as the United States defeated Bolivia 4-0

It was an easy and dominant display for the United States, beating Bolivia 4-0 in their last tune-up friendly ahead of the Copa America, including a brace from Gyasi Zardes and a history-making goal from teenage attacker Christian Pulisic.

The match started off with an almost plodding pace, with neither team looking terribly effective in possession. Bolivia had the better early chances, virtually setting up camp in the United States’ half of the pitch for awhile, forcing Jurgen Klinsmann’s side into a defensive shell in the opening minutes while they found their footing and established themselves.

Once the USMNT stabilized things, though, they took control of the match in a hurry. They quickly wrested most of the match’s possession away from Bolivia, and on one of their first actual quality forays forward, Alejandro Bedoya sent a first-time ball up and over the top for Gyasi Zardes, who did not make a mistake on his first touch as he tapped the ball in past Guillermo Vizcarra in Bolivia’s goal.

U.S. fans didn’t have to wait long for a second goal, with Michael Bradley playing a quick ball to Bedoya off a free kick, and Bedoya spotting John Brooks and setting him up with a prime opportunity in front of goal that the defender did not miss. The quick turnaround to go from slow start to runaway lead was impressive to see for the USMNT, after the way they’ve struggled at times for the last couple of years to rebound from such situations.

That extra bit of confidence saw the United States quickly score a third goal in the second half, after Bobby Wood did some very nice work to take a ball over the top, get past a Bolivia defender, then pull the ball back to a spot that only Zardes could reach to poke it home. It may not have been a gorgeous goal that will be on highlight reels for years to come, but as far as well-performed bits of teamwork goes, that was one well worth taking note of.

Then, Christian Pulisic stepped onto the pitch, and the game became all about him.

The audacious teenage attacking talent quickly made his presence felt, showing his significant talents by handily beating Bolivia defenders several times. Then, after being on the pitch for all of six minutes, he combined with Darlington Nagbe on an absolutely gorgeous goal, reading Nagbe’s pass to play him in perfectly, and finishing the move off with ease to score his first senior goal for the USMNT, becoming the youngest player in United States history to score for the national team.

It was an incredible moment, but Pulisic didn’t stop there. He didn’t score again, but he was clearly the best player on the pitch for the U.S. for the rest of the game, constantly doing everything you could ask him to. He made runs to open space for his teammates, he linked play and switched the ball around, he did great work on the ball himself, he tracked back excellently when Bolivia were on the ball, and he just generally looked every bit the part of a national team player. The fact that he’s only 17 years old and won’t be old enough even to vote until September didn’t even enter into it -- he was performing at the level you’d expect to see of a player five or 10 years his senior.

Just makes you wonder how good Pulisic will be once he is five or 10 years older.

In the meantime, the USMNT controlled the last stretches of the game with ease. Bolivia hardly looked capable of challenging them to score a goal of their own, with the U.S. midfield mostly just knocking the ball around looking for an opening. With Bolivia basically withdrawing completely into a defensive shell, that opening didn’t come, but that didn’t much matter. The game was long over, with the USMNT impressing in their final Copa America tune-up.

This result will be a huge boost of confidence for the United States ahead of their Copa America group stage opener against Colombia on June 3, especially coming off their win over Ecuador on Wednesday. Colombia are, of course, a much better team than Bolivia or Ecuador are, but the USMNT have their momentum heading in the right direction, with quality play leading to quality results. It’s just enough to give you some hope heading into a tough tournament, and hope is always a welcome thing.

Goals: Zardes (26’, 52’), Brooks (37’), Pulisic (69’)

Bolivia: Guillermo Vizcarra; Diego Bejarano, Ronald Eguino, Nelson Cabrera, Luis Gutierrez; Alejandro Melean (Rodrigo Ramallo 54’); Jhasmani Campos (Raul Castro 46’), Martin Smedberg-Dalence, Fernando Saucedo (Pedro Azogue 46’), Carmelo Algarañaz (Bruno Miranda 46’); Yasmani Duk

Goals: None

Bedoya’s attacking runs and passing instinct add a lot to the USMNT that they lack otherwise, and especially against tougher teams that like to pack in the defense a little bit, that adds a ton of value. Even against a team like Colombia who are willing to stretch it out a bit more, Bedoya’s work rate still gives him a place in the team, and the United States will be much better off against the South American power with him in the lineup.

He may not be a flashy, super-creative player, but his drive and quality instincts still allow Bedoya to get the job done. That was on display in a big way with his massively influential first half, constantly finding holes in Bolivia’s defense that he put himself in the middle of, or finding just the right pass to get the ball onto the feet of a runner. Throw in his quality work getting back to help support the defense down his flank, and Bedoya was easily the USMNT’s best player on the pitch in the first half. That’s a player who can play a big, big part for the U.S. against Colombia and in the rest of the Copa America.

Though maybe it’d be worth playing him on the right wing, his better position at the club level. Just throwing that out there.

Last summer, Bolivia opened some eyes in the Copa America, and kept them open with some good performances in friendlies and World Cup qualifiers in the year since then. They went from a slow, cumbersome team that just didn’t look like a team who could challenge the better teams in South America, to a team who played smart and tough and could get a result against anyone on the continent, even if they didn’t play silky smooth attacking football.

Right now, though, they don’t look anything like that team. They’re back to that slow and cumbersome side from before, and they lacked any confidence or attacking quality against the USMNT. Unless they get better again in a hurry, they’re going to get blown off the map in the Copa America this summer.

When Klinsmann subbed DeAndre Yedlin and Fabian Johnson into the match at halftime, we saw what will almost certainly be the starting lineup against Colombia next Friday. For reference, it’d be something like this:

As far as lineups you can make from this 23 man squad go, well, yeah, that’s fine. It’s not the best lineup they could put together -- Darlington Nagbe says hello -- but it’s a good one, and it could be a whole lot worse. They can play some good attacking soccer without exposing the defense overmuch, and has everyone playing roles they can do well in. That’s a big step up from some USMNT lineups we’ve seen in the last couple of years, so we’ll take it.