I didn't grow up in a major soccer city, partly because they really didn't exist in America yet. Pre-internet, my ability to connect with my sport on a greater scale, outside of playing, was standing in the magazine aisle of Barnes & Noble reading Soccer America and World Soccer. I'm not trying to sound like some sports martyr, but American football was king where I grew up, and soccer wasn't cool. I wasn't able to attend a game in the 1994 World Cup, but I collected the mass of merchandise that got churned through the USA, soccer balls, shirts. A few years later, in 1996, I went to the Dallas Burn vs. San Jose Clash game, something like the sixth MLS game ever.
When early MLS games weren't on Telemundo or Univision, the only way to know what happened was to listen to the radio broadcast. If the 1994 World Cup began America's love affair with soccer, the 2026 World Cup is capable of doing a helluva lot more.
I say all this because watching the USMNT dominate the first half against Paraguay on home soil felt full circle. With that said, let's talk about some takeaways.
Folarin Balogun is him.
From Eric Wynalda to Brian McBride to Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey, the US men have had some pretty good strikers over the years, but Balogun brings a kind of magnetism we've never had. The New York-born forward who picked the US over England looks, finally, like the No. 9 this program has spent decades searching for.
His second goal, the one that completed the brace, was a masterclass in maintaining possession, pushing through contact, and finding his spot in the top left corner. As of right now, he leads the golden boot race at the 2026 World Cup.
QUE GOLAÇO! BALOGUN LEVA, TIRA DA MARCAÇÃO E CHUTA PARA AMPLIAR Estados Unidos 3x0 Paraguai
— HTE Sports (@htesports.bsky.social) June 12, 2026 at 8:54 PM
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Malik Tillman gets his moment.
Tillman assisted on the second Balogun goal, but his strength and his connection with Sergiño Dest and Balogun created a bevy of chances before that one was finally put away. Tillman got the nod over Gio Reyna, and while Reyna offers the ability to move the ball around in close spaces, it seems Tillman is locked in at this point.
Chris Richards held up, until he didn't.
With Tim Ream and Mark McKenzie at the center of a back three, it felt like the USMNT were missing something. Richards stepped in a few ligaments short and stood tall in the middle of the field, and for most of the night he didn't look like a man who'd missed the entire World Cup build-up, tune-ups included. The Paraguay goal was the reminder that the tank isn't full yet; he got caught gassed, and the back line paid for it. Encouraging and unfinished in the same shift. Alex Freeman also deserves a lot of credit for his work.
The offense could be score-happy.
Paraguay are no pushovers, but the chances the US attackers created were plentiful. There were so many balls played in that just barely slipped past the feet of a USMNT player pushing into the box. This team has the ability to score a lot of goals in this tournament if they keep this up.
Mauricio Pochettino deserves his flowers.
There was a lot of discourse about Poch's picks, about how he made them, about the playstyle, about taking meetings with club teams. But if this game is any evidence, and it's the only evidence we have so far this World Cup, he deserves quite a bit of credit. That doesn't mean it couldn't all fade away in a second, but for now, give Poch his flowers.
Gio Reyna redemption arc.
The ending was an absolute gem. Reyna was practically a baby the last World Cup, and say what you will, but the kid has taken more criticism than he deserved. The goal was pure joy, the cherry on top of a beautiful night for the USMNT.
GIO REYNA, ARE YOU KIDDING?! 🤯 A STUNNING goal closes out USMNT's 4-1 victory! via @TelemundoSports
— NBC Sports Soccer (@nbcsportsoccer.bsky.social) June 12, 2026 at 10:13 PM
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