USA 4-1 Paraguay; Strong start for hosts

The United States beat Paraguay 4-1 in their opening Group D match, with Folarin Balogun scoring twice and Damian Bobadilla putting through his own net.

Christian Pulisic’s run into the box after seven minutes led to the opener, as Bobadilla turned the ball into his own goal under pressure. Balogun then had a finish ruled out for offside on 29 minutes, but he scored two minutes later to make it 2-0 before adding a second in first-half stoppage time.

Mauricio pulled one back for Paraguay in the 73rd minute during one of their few clear openings, but Giovanni Reyna restored the margin with a neat outside-of-the-foot finish in the seventh minute of added time.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side controlled much of the second half and repeatedly threatened without adding to the score until Reyna’s late strike. Dutch referee Danny Desmond McKelley booked Juan José Cáceres, Miguel Almirón, Diego Gómez and Álex Arce for Paraguay, along with Tyler Adams for the United States in the first half.