Justin Ellis scores injured to seal USMNT's fourth straight win over Canada

Justin Ellis scored through the pain to give the United States a 1-0 win over Canada on Tuesday, completing a flawless four-game international window for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

The 19-year-old Orlando City forward put the US ahead in the 29th minute, converting a cross from Alex Freeman after a sharp give-and-go with Malik Tillman down the right flank. It was Ellis’s second goal in just three national team appearances — and it came barely 10 minutes after he had been left on the ground by a heavy foul, receiving treatment on the sideline and returning to the pitch still visibly limping.

The result extended the USMNT’s winning run across the window to four games, having beaten Chile, Peru and Mexico by an aggregate of 11-3 over the previous 10 days. Tuesday’s starting lineup averaged just 21 caps and an age of 23 years and 156 days, reflecting Pochettino’s deliberate use of the fixture block to assess young talent for the programme’s long-term future.

“They seemed pretty comfortable from the beginning because they all knew each other,” defender Chris Richards said of the 13 players who earned their first international caps across the four matches. “It’s been a lot of fun getting to know everyone, and not just on the field.”

Pochettino made six changes from the side that beat Mexico 3-0 in Glendale on Friday, with 17-year-old Cavan Sullivan — who became the youngest scorer in USMNT history in that fixture — absent from the squad against Canada.

Nashville goalkeeper Brian Schwake was the other standout performer, earning a clean sheet on his first start for the national team with three saves. His most important intervention came in the 63rd minute, when he tipped a close-range effort from Luc de Fougerolles onto the crossbar.

Canada arrived in the fixture with momentum of their own, having beaten Chile 2-1 in Toronto and shut out Peru 2-0 in Montreal earlier in the window — results that followed their historic back-to-back World Cup appearances. But they were unable to find a way past a disciplined US defensive shape.

“The effort was massive,” Pochettino said. “We played four games in two weeks, and to play with the same intensity, the same commitment, the same passion is not easy. I’m not happy because we won. I’m happy because of the performance and the commitment that the players showed.”

The US now hold an all-time record of 18 wins, 12 losses and 13 draws against Canada across all competitions.