Eddie Johnson admitted to a sense of nervousness before he came off the bench for the USA on Sunday.
The Seattle Sounders star took just 14 seconds to score with his first touchy in the eventual 5-1 CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-final victory over El Salvador in Baltimore.
The goal - a header from Landon Donovan's cross - came in the 60th minute and restored the US' two-goal lead which had come courtesy of earlier goals from Clarence Goodson and Joe Corona.
Johnson, who netted his debut international goal against El Salvador back in 2004, says he did feel a little nervy before coming off the bench to help lead the US into the final four of the competition.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't [a little nervous]," said Johnson. "These teams in CONCACAF, these games, they're difficult. They're tricky.
"You can go from dominating a game into giving up a goal and the team getting right back into the game and making it really hard for us. A little nerve-wracking? Yeah, but I never had any doubt within our group."
The US will now head to Cowboys Stadium in Texas for Wednesday's semi-final against Honduras with Panama and Mexico contesting the other final four fixture.
