Am I actually excited about the Gold Cup?
Well... yeah
Earlier today it was announced that Folarin Balogun is out of this summer’s Gold Cup because of an ankle injury. He is pretty much one of the last remaining starters who was slated to be with the USMNT for this tournament. And unless you’ve been living under a rock you would know these are our last competitive matches before the 2026 World Cup.
Here is some more news for those spending quality time below ground: despite hiring a high-profile manager who has been to a Champions League final within the last decade, the national team has underperformed expectations by crashing out in Nations League by losing consecutive games to Panama and Canada. Please kindly add to the equation that these disappointing losses have been followed up by a Gold Cup roster that more closely resembles a hollow shell rather than a fully loaded cannon.
Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, Tim Weah, Weston McKennie, Antonee Robinson. That is half of the presumed starting 11 that will not be there this summer. Now add forward Folarin Balogun, defender DeJuan Jones, and midfielder Sean Zawadski to the long list of players that will not compete for the red, white, and blue.
So with sentiment surrounding the USMNT a year before a HOME WORLD CUP at an all time low, and with more than half of the starting 11 not competing in these final competitive matches - is it actually possible to be excited about this tournament?
YES. A resounding yes.
Look, there are a multitude of factors that have completely crushed my ability to spend 24/7 thinking about this team. Life has changed for me, and for the aforementioned reasons the team and USSF have not made it easy to get excited. Our social media climate has become more engulfed in rabid tribalism, and our political environment lightly dusts our fanbase with questions of cognitive dissonance. How can I love a national team representing this country when the very thing that worries me about our country is the descent into fervent nationalism? I’m genuinely not able to answer that question.
But what I do know is that that singular thing will not stop me. No singular thing will stop me and collectively those things together will not stop me. Is my current excitement less than it would be if things were different? Probably. But I can’t spend time and energy having things that I cannot control impact me to such a degree.
I am excited about the Gold Cup and I will not deny it! Here are a few things I’m particularly excited about:
Pochettino has a tournament setting to implement his style and find the right cadence for things like player synergies and substitution timing. It’s not quite World Cup pressure but gives a World Cup-like environment to prepare.
In the same light, Pochettino is generally allergic to caution. He will have no problem throwing on an unproven Quinn Sullivan or similar players if the situation calls for it. These actions will spark months of fan debate good or bad.
Berhalter v2 electric boogaloo is here. Sebastian Berhalter is without a doubt one of the best central midfielders in MLS this season. I am excited to see some of the young MLS talent that may have a chip on their shoulder and reignite the intensity we expect from the USMNT.
Big Patrick Agyemang from Charlotte FC has the chance to continue his cinderella story. A college standout in Rhode Island who played for a USL2 team during the summers to keep fit is now potentially the starting striker for the US national team. I’m psyched up for this dowg. Woof woof.
Win lose or draw still cheering this team on and I love tournament. No one is crying for us we are just going through a poor spell of form now and I would rather have it now v next year. Others players can plant their flag for next year!!!!!
Don’t forget the TST starts in a couple days the summer of soccer is starting with a bang!!!
I couldn't agree more with all of this. A decade ago the idea of a home World Cup in my adult life had me over the moon. I'm now finding it hard to decide if I even want to cheer for the US at present. Much like with the 4 Nations (I'm actually a hockey player first), I was able to focus on the sports-aspect alone. I am an American and these guys represent us. They're not government henchmen, they're American men like you or I who are also living through these wild times and of course I don't hate the people of America.
In a soccer sense, although it would be nice to have close to a finished roster, we already know a lot about CP, and McKennie and everyone else -- let's see what Berhalter and Brian White and Agyemang et al. can bring and if they can work their way into next year's roster. What excites me about this group is it feels like the USMNT of old. No European superstars...just a bunch of young players with a lot to prove and a chip on their shoulder. Certainly not a single one of them will take this lightly. Onward.