A decision by Lawrenceville’s Walker Zimmerman contributed to the U.S. dropping two points in a 1-1 draw with Wales on Monday at the World Cup in Qatar.
Zimmerman elected to tackle Gareth Bale, whose back was turned to the goal, in the U.S. penalty box in the 80th minute. Referee Abdulrahman Al-Jassim correctly judged that Zimmerman fouled Bale, who converted the penalty kick in the 82nd minute to tie the game. The left-footed Bale went to his right with his hard-hit penalty kick. Goalkeeper Matt Turner got a hand on the shot but couldn’t stop it from going in.
Zimmerman is one of three players from metro Atlanta to be selected by manager Gregg Berhalter for the U.S. team. Goalkeeper Sean Johnson, a native of Lilburn, and fullback Shaq Moore, a native of Powder Springs, didn’t play. Zimmerman played 90 minutes. Zimmerman, who plays for Nashville, completed 94.4% of his passes and didn’t win any of his six duels. His error against Bale was his only foul committed.
The U.S. will play England on Friday. The Three Lions hammered Iran 6-2 in the group’s other game.
