The USMNT faced off against El Salvador in the final match of 2020 at the Inter Miami CF Stadium in Ft Lauderdale, Florida in front of a reduced capacity of fans in attendance.
A fast start for the Americans
You could tell from the start that this was going to be one-way traffic and one team would dominate the other. El Salvador was the first to get a chance to score in the 5th minute when Darwin Ceren managed to get a shot on target but Bill Hamid was there to make the save.Paul Arriola responded for the home team three minutes later but that too was saved by the keeper Henry Hernandez.
The first goal of the match came in the 17th minute when Arriola got a great feed from newcomer Chris Mueller who was making his debut with the team. Arriola would take the pass and put it top shelf on Hernandez to give the American side an early 1-0 lead.
They didn't stop there as three minutes later Mueller scored his first goal with a great shot to double the US lead.
The goals kept coming for the Americans as another three minutes later Sebastian Lletget got in on the action and managed to lob Hernandez to make it 3-0. It was turning into a clinic and El Salvador looked out of sorts and was no match for the powerhouse Americans.
Mueller would score his second goal of the game in the 25th minute when scored with an amazing diving header to make it 4-0.
Two minutes later Ayo Akinola added his name to the scoresheet when the Americans managed a three on one and Akinola finished the play by putting the ball into the back of the net to make it five.
More dominance in the second half
Five minutes into the second half Brenden Aaronson put the match away scoring his first of the match to make it 6-0. Hamid, who had not been that busy, was forced into action in the 73rd minute when he made back-to-back saves on Denis Pineda and Duston Corea to keep his clean sheet alive.
The whistle blew at the 90th minute with zero added time with the Americans head into 2021 on a high. After the match, Mueller spoke about he was able to gel with his so club in such a short matter of time.
" You have to push to make things work, your playing for the crest, your playing for your country, for your nation, it's not something that someone who goes into that locker room and puts on that shirt takes lightly"