First cam Friday’s 3-0 loss to Mexico in the Meadowlands, a larger margin of defeat than the U.S. suffered two months earlier in the Concacaf Gold Cup final.

A 1-1 draw Tuesday against an Uruguay squad without most of its regular stars, in which the Americans leveled late thanks to an incredibly fortunate deflection off fullback Nick Lima.

Despite those results, Berhalter insisted each match represented progress toward his vision of a team that builds from the back and plays possession oriented soccer.

It’s clear Berhalter views his tenure with the U.S. as a long-term project, one that is still currently in a preliminary stage where employing concepts is more important than earning results, especially in friendly matches.

The emotion of being routed by your big rival aside, it’s an argument that makes some sense for a program that appeared lost for an idenity during the latter sages of Jurgen Klinsmann’s tenure.

For that reason, American fans are right to want proof not only that Berhalter’s charges are learning his concepts, but that they are capable of using them to produce results against quality opposition.