USMNT Suffers Embarrassing Friendly Loss To Japan: Fans React

The US Men's National Team took on Japan in a friendly on Friday in what was a tune-up for the World Cup in Qatar later this year, and the American side looked terrible. The USMNT, ranked 14th in the world, fell 2-0 to 24th-ranked Japan. The match was played in Dusseldorf, Germany.

Christian Pulisic did not play in the match due to injury. But even Captain America wouldn't have saved this USMNT squad against Japan. Gregg Berhalter's side was horrific, to put it lightly.

While the US managed to control 58% of the possession on Friday, it was outshot by Japan 16-4. The USMNT didn't manage to put a single shot on goal, while the Japanese put eight shots on target.

Goalkeeper Matt Turner, who plays his club soccer for Arsenal, was the lone bright spot for the USMNT making a handful of quality saves.

While at the end of the day this is just a friendly loss for a non-complete Team USA, it's worrisome. The USMNT will take on Saudi Arabia in its final World Cup friendly next week, and fans will want to see a lot more out of the squad in that matchup.

The 2022 World Cup begins Nov. 20.

USMNT Fans React To Bad Loss To Japan

Written by

Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and all other happenings in the world of golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.