Advertisement

Soccer-US, Peru, Mexico warm up for Centenary Copa with wins

May 28 (Reuters) - Teenage U.S. midfielder Christian Pulisic grabbed the headlines by scoring his first international goal in a 4-0 win over Bolivia while Mexico and Peru also enjoyed wins in Copa America warm-up matches on Saturday. The 17-year-old Pulisic came on as a substitute after 63 minutes and five minutes later slotted home the Americans' fourth goal from 12 yards after nice work from Darlington Nagbe. Gyasi Zardes scored once in each half and John Brooks got another against a poor Bolivia side who rarely threatened. It was the United States' biggest win over a South American opponent and came three days after they beat Ecuador 1-0. It also marked the first time they have beaten two South American teams in successive matches. "We are pleased with the game, the result, the energy," said U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann. The United States will host the Centenary Copa America and are playing in Group A against Paraguay, Colombia and Costa Rica. The tournament kicks off on Friday when the hosts play Colombia and runs until the June 26 final in New Jersey. In another warm-up game held in Washington DC, Peru won 3-1 against El Salvador, the only one of the six teams in action on Saturday who are not playing in the Centenary Copa. A cracking 25-yard drive from Raul Ruidiaz opened the scoring for Peru after 13 minutes and they got a second from Andy Polo's header on the hour mark. Nelson Bonilla got one back for El Salvador after 82 minutes but Yoshimar Yotun grabbed a third for the Peruvians just moments from the end. Peru face Haiti, Ecuador and Brazil in Copa Group B. Mexico beat Paraguay 1-0 in the earlier game in Atlanta, with Andres Guardado getting the winner after 31 minutes. The win was coach Juan Carlos Osorio's seventh successive triumph in charge of 'El Tri', who have been runners up in the Copa America twice. They will play in Group C against Uruguay, Jamaica and Venezuela. (Writing by Andrew Downie; Editing by Peter Rutherford; )