U.S. men beat Morocco in World Cup primer; Christian Pulisic unhappy with fan support

June 2 (UPI) -- Star striker Christian Pulisic picked up an assist to help the United States Men's National Team beat Morocco in a World Cup warmup, but was not happy about the lack of fan support at the soccer match in Cincinnati.

"For whatever reason, I'm not super happy with the amount of Americans here, however that works out, if I'm being completely honest," Pulisic told ESPN in an on-field interview after the 3-0 victory Wednesday at TQL Stadium.

"But thanks to the ones who did come, and the support is always great from them."

A crowd of 19,512 attended the match at the 1-year-old stadium, which holds a capacity of 26,000. Right wing Brenden Aaronson and forwards Tim Weah and Haji Wright scored for the Americans, who qualified for the World Cup in March.

Pulisic set up the first goal with a brilliant touch in the 26th minute. The star striker used a soft trap to bring down a long feed inside the box to spark that score. He dribbled between two defenders and played a soft pass to his left for Aaronson, who fired a close-range shot into the net.

Weah doubled the lead in the 32nd minute. Right back Reggie Cannon dribbled up the right flank to start that sequence. He then passed off to Weah, who took two taps toward the box. Weah then ripped a right-footed shot from about 20 yards out, which went past Morocco goalie Yassine Bounou and into the net.

The Americans carried the two-goal lead into the half. They scored the final goal in the 64th minute. Pulisic was fouled in the box to prompt a penalty kick for that score. Wright, a second-half substitute, calmly stepped up to the spot and ripped a grounded shot into the left side of the net.

"I felt like the group went out and showed exactly how good we can be, but also at times vulnerable," U.S. men's coach Gregg Berhalter told reporters. "We are very happy with the result, but we still know we can keep improving.

"That's why this game was good for us."

The Americans will play another World Cup warmup against Uruguay at 5 p.m. EDT Sunday at Children's Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan. They will play their first game at the 2022 World Cup on Nov. 21 in Qatar.