Less than two months after qualifying for the knockout round at the 2022 World Cup ended with a loss in the round of 16 NetherlandsMembers of the United States men’s national team joined the team’s second game in 2023 knowing that the show would soon be no whole front office apart from not having a full-time head coach.
Saturday’s friendly match with Colombia (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT, Peacock, Universo) comes after rumors Thursday that USMNT general manager Brian McBride and US Soccer athletic director Earnie Stewart will be leaving their roles in the coming days and weeks . The future of World Cup coach Gregg Berhalter is in doubt as the USSF awaits the results of an investigation into a 1991 domestic incident involving Berhalter, plus the midfielder’s conduct. by Gio Reyna parents before they reported the episode to Stewart. Currently, Berhalter has been temporarily replaced by assistant coach Anthony Hudson.
There is a lot to handle for the player. One can expect an inexperienced young squad lacking European standouts like Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie — most players on regular club duty until the next FIFA international competition opens in late March — will be distracted or anxious. Instead, it’s mostly business as usual.
“It’s a transitional moment, but for us as players, the continuity of the way we’ve played and done what we’ve been doing for the past four years, that hasn’t changed too much. for us at this time. ” the defender said Walker Zimmerman, one of five people participating in this camp, which includes most of the off-season MLSers who attended the World Cup in Qatar. “We’re going to keep doing that and keep trying to make an impression every time we play for the United States.”
Still, it’s been a strange time for the USMNT. Hudson was only allowed to enter two exhibitions in January; he will now hold the helm through two official competitions later this year, CONCACAF Gold Cup and National Federationbefore a new coach is finally appointed by the new athletic director.
The players tried to overcome the conflict; Zimmerman said he has been in contact with both Berhalter and Reyna in recent weeks. He revealed that Stewart, who took the job of technical director at Dutch titan PSV Eindhoven, pulled several veterans aside to speak to them for themselves the night before the announcement. McBride’s departure has been previous report. Both men will be missed.
Zimmerman said of the pair: “There are always two people first.
Shifts between management levels are common in top-level sports, but Stewart’s revelation in particular blinded most people. That happening between games isn’t ideal either.
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The American men dropped the first game of the new year on Wednesday, fell to Serbia 2-1. Despite having eight underrated players, the Americans are still vivacious and aggressive, with forwards Cade Cowell and Brandon Vazquez and 18 year old goalkeeper Gaga Slonina among those who made an impression. However, the US still lost. Hudson said on Friday: “The results are really hard to accept.
Match against a dynamic Colombian team featuring elite MLS strikers Cristian Arango and Cucho Hernandez It probably wouldn’t be any easier. “It was a different kind of check than the night before,” Hudson said. “They are a good team.”
Los Cafeteros will also have their fans behind them. A US Soccer spokesman said the league was on track to sell out tickets at the 27,000-capacity Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, with most attendees expected to support the team. guest.
Meanwhile, Hudson’s lineup options were limited by physical limitations; Zimmerman is the only World Cup player who could start earlier this week. The rest of the team is also in pre-season form.
“We have to have a minimum number of players who can play for 90 minutes,” Hudson said. “That in itself was a challenge.”
It’s one of these many camps. Qatar vets – kellyn acosta, Jesus Ferreira, Sean Johnson and Aaron Long are others — plus the famous longtime US winger Paul Arriola instrumental in maintaining a sense of normalcy within the group.
They even got some good news on Friday; the America will host Copa America tournament in the summer of 2024, giving the hosts a chance to face Brazil and defending World Cup champions Argentina ahead of the 2026 World Cup. “It’s huge for us,” said Zimmerman. “It’s something to look forward to.”
First, they want to end the current camp forcefully.
“It’s calm. It’s very focused. It’s very professional,” Hudson said of the USMNT’s week-long stay in Los Angeles. “Senior men have helped drive expectations on and off the pitch. So overall, the players and staff have come together to create a camp that is really fun to be in.”
Doug McIntyre is a football writer for FOX Sports. Prior to joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was an editor for ESPN and Yahoo Sports, and he covered the U.S. men’s and women’s national teams at various FIFA World Cups. . Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.
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