Mauricio Pochettino secured his maiden victory as the US coach, with Yunus Musah scoring in the 49th minute off an assist from AC Milan teammate Christian Pulisic and Ricardo Pepi sealing the win with a stoppage-time goal, leading to a 2-0 triumph over Panama on Saturday night.

The match, held at Q2 Stadium in front of a nearly full crowd of 20,239, marked the first of two friendlies for the US within a four-day period, with a subsequent game against Mexico scheduled for Tuesday in Guadalajara. This victory ended a four-game winless streak for the Americans and their first four-game home winless streak since a seven-game slide in 2010-11.

Pochettino, a 52-year-old Argentine who previously managed Tottenham, Chelsea, and Paris Saint-Germain, was appointed last month to succeed Gregg Berhalter, who was dismissed in July following a first-round exit at the Copa América. Pochettino's contract extends through the 2026 World Cup, which the US will co-host, and his mission is to revitalize a team that hasn't reached the World Cup quarter-finals since 2002.

“Little by little building something. The objective is 2026,” Pochettino remarked. “It’s only the first step.”

Musah's goal was his first in 42 international appearances. Antonee Robinson maneuvered past defender Michael Murillo on the flank and centered the ball to Pulisic, who exchanged passes with Brenden Aaronson before one-timing a cross. Musah then beat defender César Blackman and volleyed the ball past Orlando Mosquera from four yards.

Pulisic played under his eighth US coach, setting a record for an American player. The US team was without several key players due to injury, including Sergiño Dest, Tyler Adams, Gio Reyna, Tim Weah, and Folarin Balogun.

The second goal came in the fourth minute of stoppage time, with three second-half substitutes combining. Malik Tillman received a kick from goalkeeper Matt Turner and passed to Haji Wright, who crossed. Ricardo Pepi, a Texas native, slid the ball through Mosquera’s legs for his 11th goal in 31 appearances, his fourth in three international games in Austin.

Turner, who played all four matches at the 2022 World Cup, made a double save in the 52nd minute, deflecting Puma Rodríguez’s shot with his left hand and then diving to block Yoel Bárcenas’ rebound attempt.

Panama’s José Fajardo missed an open shot in the 87th minute.

Tim Ream captained the Americans a week after his 37th birthday, becoming the oldest US field player since Preki Radosavljević in 2001. Forward Josh Sargent made his first start since the 2022 group-stage final against Iran.

Mexican referee Katia Garcia was believed to be the first woman to officiate a US men’s national team match.

Goalkeeper Zack Steffen, who hasn’t played for the US since the last World Cup qualifiers in March 2022, was sidelined due to a minor injury, according to the US Soccer Federation. Defender Marlon Fossey, who did not train on the field in recent days, also did not dress.