Overview

• Mauricio Pochettino rejected Christian Pulisic’s request to play friendlies but skip the Gold Cup, saying players cannot dictate the plan.
• Pulisic said he respected the coach’s decision but “didn’t understand” why he was excluded from both the pre-tournament matches and the tournament itself.
• The United States snapped a four-game losing run with a dominant 5-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago in San Jose.
• Several regulars, including Pulisic, Antonee Robinson, Sergiño Dest and Folarin Balogun, are missing from the Gold Cup squad due to injury or personal reasons.
• Midfielder Tyler Adams trained ahead of the opener and was close to returning from a foot injury, according to Pochettino.