Antonee ‘Jedi’ Robinson gave Berhalter, USMNT the World Cup qualifying win they

COLUMBUS, Ohio — When the United States men’s national team went into halftime with El Salvador on Thursday without a goal, any feeling of anxiousness that might have crept into the home locker room would have been understandable. With a World Cup berth not yet secured, anything other than a win would have been considered a massive disappointment.

For this USMNT team, though, it was a familiar and, maybe, an even comfortable position. The team has struggled in the first half throughout qualifying — it has just two first-half goals in nine games — but has routinely found ways to strike back in the second half. This game would be no different.

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As he did against Honduras in September, left-back Antonee Robinson — who goes by the nickname Jedi — summoned the force for an important goal early in the second half, which held up in a pivotal 1-0 win.

“We call our full-backs the superpower of our team,” United States manager Gregg Berhalter said. “We do that because they produce; they give assists and goals and if you look at World Cup qualifying so far, our full-backs have contributed heavily.”

The sentiment of being linked to mystical abilities works just fine for Robinson, who has been called Jedi since he was a young boy due to his fascination with the Star Wars movies.

“I feel weird being called Antonee,” he said. “I prefer being called Jedi.”

The United States has received strong play from other full-backs — namely Sergino Dest and DeAndre Yedlin — but Robinson, in particular, has developed into one of the most important players on the roster. His value was illustrated when Berhalter didn’t include any other natural left-backs on the roster this window and was reinforced throughout the performance against El Salvador in which he made significant contributions in both defense and in attack.

Playing on the same side of the field as Christian Pulisic, who routinely dropped into midfield and moved centrally, Robinson was tasked with staying wide, where he was able to pressure the opposing outside back with the ball and get in position to send in crosses. In defense, he was part of a unit that was rarely challenged all game, often intervening in opposing attacks before they had a chance to develop.

On the goal, Jesus Ferreira, who earned his first start of qualifying, headed the ball into the area, where Robinson calmly slotted it home from about six yards out near the back post. It was a bit of a broken play, but Robinson credited Berhalter’s strategy of having him hover near the back post when the ball came in from the opposite side.

He celebrated with a cartwheel into a backflip into a fake injury and a celebratory strut, which awakened the sold-out crowd of 20,000 in Columbus, where the team is now 9-1-2 all time in World Cup qualifying matches.

Forward Timothy Weah admitted afterward he briefly thought Robinson pulled his hamstring during the celebration, but Berhalter found himself in awe more than anything.

“If a guy scores like that and chooses to do that, who might…