The U.S. men’s national team needed a second-half comeback to tie CONMEBOL opponents Ecuador on Friday night in Austin, Texas.
Folarin Balogun’s second-half equalizer helped Mauricio Pochettino’s side fight back to tie Ecuador 1-1 at Q2 Stadium. Enner Valencia’s first-half finish propelled La Tri in front before halftime, but an improved performance from the hosts led to a shared result for both teams.
The USMNT had the first positive offensive look in the eighth minute with Balogun testing Ecuador goalkeeper Hernan Galindez.
Ecuador’s talisman Valencia broke the deadlock in the 24th minute, netting his 48th international goal. John Yeboah played Valencia upfield with a pass before the Pachuca forward edged past Chris Richards and scored.
Richards almost made amends two minutes after the restart, redirecting Malik Tillman’s cross towards the bottom-right corner. However, Galindez dove to his left and pushed Richards’ shot off the post.
A fiesty second half saw the USMNT begin to up their pressure, which eventually led to the equalizing goal. Tanner Tessmann’s through ball pass to Tillman inside the Ecuador box led to Tillman hitting Balogun in stride for a one-time finish off of the right post.
It marked Balogun’s seventh international goal and his second-consecutive goalscoring performance.
Christian Pulisic, Haji Wright, and Cristian Roldan all entered the match with the USMNT fighting for a winning goal, but Ecuador’s stubborn backline held firm to hang on for a draw.
The USMNT will close their two-match October window on Tuesday against Australia.
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