The Poch's boys continue to excite fans with a rout of Chile, while Márquez struggles to find his footing in Mexico following a lackluster draw against Peru

Pochettino's project to revitalize the U.S. national team continues to go from strength to strength. The young players tasked with taking over from the old guard and leading the new national team toward the next major challenges are living up to the trust placed in them and thrashed Chile (4-2). Rafa Márquez has more work ahead of him in Mexico. The coach experimented with the lineup and ended up expressing gratitude for a lackluster draw against Peru.

Poch's Boys, as this new crop of promising players is known, once again showed their hunger, and have scored 8 goals in just two games. The rout of a tough and difficult opponent like Chile—even if it isn't at its best right now—shows maturity and that this new U.S. team can be a force to be reckoned with.

They also showed character, refusing to be intimidated by the Chileans' style of play, right up to the final scuffle sparked by a ugly tackle by Leandro Hernández on goalkeeper Chris Brady as the match was about to end.

"I'm very happy; it's hard to maintain this level of consistency"

At the post-match press conference, Pochettino couldn't hide his satisfaction: "I'm very happy; it's hard to maintain this level of consistency. There's no way to overstate the value of these kinds of performances—they're very good for the players and the team as a whole."

Once again, it was the young players who carried the team. Borussia Dortmund forward Mathis Albert stood out; at 17 years and four months old, he became the youngest goal scorer in the history of the U.S. national team.

His goal in stoppage time (90+6')—a powerful shot that hit the crossbar before crossing the goal line—allowed him to break the record held by Christian Pulisic, the team's star player, who was absent during this international window.

The 'kids' break records

Julian Hall, 18, also set new records. After scoring against Peru, he did it again against Chile, making him the first player to score in his first two appearances for the U.S. national team.

In addition, the forward also played a role in the U.S. team's first goal after receiving a pass from Sergiño Dest inside the box, letting the ball roll between his legs, and setting up Sebastián Berhalter (37').

Chile struggled to get into the game, though they reacted after the U.S.'s first goal and managed to turn the game around in the minutes leading up to and immediately following halftime.

It was a fleeting moment that ended with Hall's equalizing header. From there, Pochettino made five substitutions after the hour mark, bringing in several players with experience from the 2026 World Cup.

One of them, defender Chris Richards, scored the U.S.'s third goal in the 72nd minute, heading in a precise corner kick from Berhalter.

Márquez seeks the right formula for La Tri

With an unprecedented and experimental lineup against Peru, Mexico's head coach Rafael Márquez barely managed a 1-1 draw in a friendly match played in front of more than 25,000 spectators at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey.

In his second test at the helm of La Tri, Márquez fielded a completely different starting lineup than the one that started on Saturday against Colombia.

"It was a new lineup in which many players were playing together for the first time. What I wanted was to see players in this type of match and in these kinds of situations. I believe in young players; that's why I dared to field this lineup with very young players. Our average age is 24, compared to Peru's 29. I don't know who else would have dared to do that," said Márquez.

The changes included the debuts of goalkeeper Oscar García, who started, and, in the second half, forwards Santiago Sandoval and Hugo Camberos.

Several promising young players make their debuts

The 23-year-old goalkeeper made his debut with El Tri a month after being named the best goalkeeper in the Leagues Cup. On defense, Márquez tried out Jeremy Márquez at right back, even though his usual position is midfielder.

In midfield, the naturalized Spanish-born Álvaro Fidalgo took the spot of Gilberto Mora, but was unable to provide the same organization and dynamism as the 17-year-old Aztec prodigy.

On Peru's bench, Brazilian Mano Menezes made five changes to the starting lineup that suffered a 4-1 rout at the hands of the United States on Saturday.

Notable in the Peruvian lineup were two familiar faces from Mexican soccer: goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and midfielder Yoshimar Yotún, who was a league champion with Cruz Azul. Mexico dominated the first half but lacked clarity, intensity, depth, and the ability to break down the defense.

Jairo Vélez, five goals in six games with Peru

After 25 uneventful minutes, Peru launched an attack down the left flank, and Jeremy Márquez's lack of defensive experience was exposed as he was beaten by Jairo Vélez, who put Peru up 1-0 with a touch at the far post (26'). The Ecuadorian-born player is Menezes's key bet as a playmaker in his build-up to the 2030 World Cup.

The Alianza Lima player scored his fifth goal in six matches with Peru, all in 2026. At the end of the first half, goalkeeper Gallese easily dealt with Mexico's offensive attempts.

Mexico equalized early in the second half on a set piece that Guzmán headed in at the 49-minute mark, his first goal for El Tri. The final minutes were evenly matched, and, with creativity running low, Márquez sent in Camberos and Sandoval, both 19 years old, who stand out on the offensive side of Gabriel Milito's Guadalajara.

On Saturday, as part of the ongoing FIFA international break, Mexico will face the United States in Arizona, and Peru will take on Canada in Montreal