Winners and losers: Christian Pulisic bags a brace as Manchester United-bound Mauricio Pochettino begins USMNT farewell with 6-0 Haiti rout

For 60-ish minutes, Haiti kept Pulisic somewhat quiet in the USMNT star’s first post-World Cup game. A penalty, awarded after he was brought down in the box following Julian Hall’s backheel, changed everything. Pulisic converted in the 62nd minute, then struck again a minute later. Suddenly, he had two goals to his name.

Pulisic’s second goal was even better than his first. Less than a minute after converting his penalty, he scored from open play with a shot from just outside the box. After the penalty, he had run over to celebrate with family. This time, there was just a smile, as if he hadn’t had time to plan another celebration.

Scoring was reason enough to celebrate, though. So many eyes were on the USMNT star given how this World Cup ended and, although this wasn't as dominant a performance as the goals will indicate, it was one that ultimately resulted in a brace. It'll take more than a brace to start building back the vibes heading into this cycle, though, but this was a pretty nice start for a player that needed exactly that.

With a sold-out crowd in Miami and countless eyes watching from across the pond in Manchester, Pochettino's side delivered. Losing against Haiti, theoretically, wouldn't have impacted his arrival at Manchester United, but it wouldn't have looked good, would it? No concerns there, though.

Just one day after it was announced that Pochettino was bound for Old Trafford, the USMNT played without any sort of hangover effects. Whether Pochettino's departure added any extra motivation, only the players can say. At the very least, it's safe to say that Pochettino had those players ready to play and, in the end, ready to put a beating on an overmatched Haiti team.

For the USMNT, that's great. For those in Manchester watching, it provided some reason for excitement. Haiti are no Liverpool, of course, but this was a fun display of Poch-ball and how, ultimately, it can lead to goals. There were plenty of those on Saturday and plenty of reasons for Pochettino to feel good about where he's leaving this team when he does inevitably leave.

Heading into halftime, Haiti were losing, but they were in it. The "hosts" were down a goal, but doing relatively okay. They had one good chance of their own and conceded via a set piece on the other side. It happens.

Then, early in the second half, it all fell apart. A 1-0 loss in the first leg is fine. 6-0? Heading to an away leg in Cincinnati? That's going to be tough to come back from.

The USMNT's 15-minute blitz included four goals that effectively buried Les Grenadiers, giving them a hole that will almost certainly be too big to climb out of. It didn't look like it was going that way for most of the match, though. Haiti was playing well enough until, suddenly, they weren't, effectively ending their hopes of winning the game and the tie.

Tuesday is little more than a formality now, which will be a tough pill to swallow considering how the match started.

Hall's starts for the USMNT have generally followed a similar script. He knocks and knocks, then knocks some more. Then, ultimately, he gets his goal, and there's never any denying how deserved it is.

The rising young New York Red Bulls striker deserved his finish on Saturday, and the truth is that he may have deserved a few more. Before netting in the 53rd minute, Hall had one fantastic chance pushed away and one narrowly called back via an offside call. And yet, as usual, he kept threatening until he finally broke through.

Credit to Antonee Robinson for the ball that put him through, but credit, too, to Hall for the composure. He received the ball, took a touch and finished calmly, silencing the pro-Haiti crowd so soon into the second half. That's now four in five games and four in around 300 minutes for a player who continues to make the most of his opportunities.

There are trade-offs made when certain players start in midfield. With Sebastian Berhalter, for example, you're giving up a little bit of ability to control the game when you start him in the center of the park.

What you get, though, is worth it. He showed that again on Saturday.

Berhalter's brilliant set piece set up the USMNT's first goal, leaving Auston Trusty with little more than a tap-in. Trusty got the goal, but Berhalter's free kick to the back post did all of the heavy lifting.

It's not the first time, either. Since his USMNT emergence, Berhalter's free kicks have been a legitimate weapon for the USMNT. They've led to multiple goals and even more dangerous moments. Set pieces aren’t always sexy, but Berhalter’s deliveries can be. Just ask Trusty.

As long as he does that, he more than justifies his place, even as a new coach prepares to come in.