For the first time in the Gregg Berhalter era, the USMNT faced difficult competition. Chile, flush with world-class players and a desperate attitude, forced the spry U.S. to a 1-1 draw and generally pounded the ball in possession. The new Berhalter system survived, but only barely. Kinks will continue to be ironed. 

Mere survival, however, is positive. It meant the U.S. were good enough in possession to keep Chile from overpowering them. Sloppy touches and clumsy defending (which can partly be accomplished with systemic familiarity) induced some of the U.S.’s woes.

Berhalter went into this game knowing it would be the first test of his system against tough competition. Though high-level absences skew takeaways a little bit, Berhalter now has useful film to analyze as he contemplates his future plans. Let’s look at the most important things he should focus on.

1. With Tyler Adams back to RB Leipzig, DeAndre Yedlin played as a traditional right back. It was the first time we’ve seen a Berhalter U.S. team with someone other than Adams or Nick Lima at the position, which has been tasked with playing as a de facto fourth central midfielder. The concern with this newfangled full back role is the space it leaves on the counterattack, particularly against higher-caliber teams, and by starting Yedlin, Berhalter dodges that concern for the time being.

Yedlin’s 90 minutes indicate Berhalter’s apprehensiveness taking aim at tough competition with every tenant of his aggressive setup. If he had tried Lima at right back and Yedlin at right wing, or even assigned Yedlin the inverted role, he would have risked letting Chile run rampant and ravaging his young team’s confidence. Berhalter will wrestle with similar concerns as he deals with other difficult teams. 

Neither fullback (Tim Ream played left back again) ventured into the midfield very often, or even did much overlapping. Much of Yedlin’s forward movement came after the 66th minute, when Berhalter subbed Wil Trapp for Paul Arriola and switched the formation to a 5-4-1 / 3-4-3 hybrid, pushing Yedlin and substitute Daniel Lovitz to wingback. 

Ream struggled all game, narrowly avoiding a pair of defensive catastrophes. His role as Berhalter’s left back of choice has to be questioned, given his nervousness playing out of pressure and notorious propensity for barfing up at least one calamitous error per match. Finding a replacement could be difficult in the immediate term, as questions remain about Lovitz’s comfort at the international level. 

Yedlin, for his part, was fine, and earned the captain’s armband over Michael Bradley, which is mildly surprising. Adams’s return to Leipzig robbed us of the chance to see how a Yedlin-Adams relationship on the right flank could function, with Yedlin providing defensive cover from the wing position as Adams inverts. 

2. Christian Pulisic scored a nice goal and looked lively in 36 minutes, but left with a quad injury and became the second core piece to leave with an injury in two friendlies. Hopefully, Pulisic avoids missing significant time, which unfortunately does not appear to be the case for Weston McKennie.

Pulisic played in a central role and maneuvered across the field, often on the break. He should play on the wing in the future, allowing flexibility in the middle and giving him more chances to cut inside and search out angles to run at backlines. Playing him on the wing could also give Berhalter a chance to deploy Sebastian Lletget centrally as an attacking connector, potentially doubling the U.S.’s creative output. For now, the Chile game will provide a nice data point for those who argue Pulisic should play in the middle.

3. Bradley was fantastic. He looked as comfortable as ever in Berhalter’s system and galloped around the field hitting exquisite balls.

Another fantastic pass from Michael Bradley. He combined well with Ream to get out of pressure, drove forward on the dribble, and then hit a perfect diagonal ball to Baird at the far post. Should've ended in a goal.#USAvCHI #USMNT #TheGeneral pic.twitter.com/cSkCFqL3v6

— Joga Bonito (@Jasoninho10) March 27, 2019

Problems arose when Bradley had to defend mostly on his own. Cristian Roldan can’t cover the kind of ground or win the sort of midfield battles that Adams or McKennie can, so Bradley was too often left alone. Chile, a smart team that features Arturo Vidal parading around in its midfield, hit well-timed between-the-lines passes that debilitated the USA’s press. Things improved some when Trapp entered to sit next to Bradley.

4. The U.S. have to learn to adapt in possession so as to avoid entrapment. Having more capable ball-moving defenders would help (Ream was not that, and Omar Gonzalez certainly wasn’t either), but against a team like Chile, they have to get the ball to midfield quickly and proceed from there. Berhalter’s wide-set possession shape is too vulnerable to risk costly turnovers or desperation clearances out of bounds. 

Developing re-press strategies is an important part of Berhalter’s goals for this team, as proven by his film session with Taylor Twellman that ESPN broadcast at half-time (more of that, please). His re-press is more effective and less dicey higher up the field. 

5. Gyasi Zardes looked good! His assist to Pulisic ran contrary to everything everyone has always thought about him—he displayed a good first touch and soft feet and played a perfectly weighted pass. He’s not the answer at striker, but he made a nice case for himself in Houston. 

6. Corey Baird works hard, but he doesn’t have enough yet to excel as a field-stretching winger at this level. He’s more of a savvy connector than an on-ball difference-maker. If Adams plays in the midfield, Jordan Morris is the starter on the right wing. If Adams is playing pseudo right back, Yedlin is likely the go-to ahead of him.

The enigmatic Arriola provides more than Baird, but I’m not quite as high on him as others seem to be. He occasionally forfeits chances in open space. He could be out of the lineup if Pulisic shifts wide.

7. Horvath looked comfortable and smart with the ball at his feet. He didn’t get a ton of shot-stopping opportunities, but right now he should be penciled in as Zack Steffen’s backup at goalkeeper.

8. More Jonathan Lewis. That is all.

Harrison Hamm is a sportswriter who covers American soccer and MLS for FloFC. He also covers sports for FanSided and The Comeback, and has freelanced for the Washington Post.