Brazil star Neymar believes that Christian Pulisic has the ability to lead the U.S. men’s national team to a surprise performance at the Copa América.
Pulisic was in inspired form in the USMNT’s tournament opener on Sunday night, as his third-minute goal put his team on its way to a 2-0 win over Bolivia.
That early strike made it two straight games with a goal for Pulisic, who also found the net with a free kick in the USMNT’s 1-1 friendly draw against Brazil earlier this month.
The USMNT surprised Neymar in that match, and the Seleção‘s all-time top scorer believes Gregg Berhalter’s side can trouble some of the Copa América’s biggest sides.
“I know Pulisic, I watched the Brazil vs. United States game and the U.S. team surprised me a lot because they ran a lot, they played great defense against Brazil,” Neymar said in a video posted on X by Pase Filtrado.
“[Pulisic] is a great player, he spent a long time at Chelsea,” the Al Hilal star added. “The U.S. will surprise during the Copa América. From what I saw in the game against Brazil, they have everything to give teams trouble.”
Neymar was only able to watch his country’s game against the USMNT, as he remains sidelined with a torn ACL that will keep him out of the Copa América. The 32-year-old will be watching again on Monday as Brazil kicks off its Copa América with a match against Costa Rica in Los Angeles.
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