The USA Males’s Nationwide Crew misplaced 5-1 on Saturday to Colombia in a pleasant match in Maryland — the worst results of Gregg Berhalter’s USMNT teaching profession and one of many staff’s largest drubbings on residence soil in its historical past.
With outcomes like this Colombia loss piling up, it seems to be just like the gamers are beginning to lose persistence with Berhalter.
“We’re nowhere close to the extent we have to play at if we wish to win video games coming into Copa America,” captain Christian Pulisic mentioned, per The Athletic.
Might the USMNT be in for a management change? If Berhalter’s males proceed to lose, it is arduous to see him staying within the job long run — not with skilled coaches comparable to Gonzalo Pineda ready within the wings.
This sport in opposition to Colombia was meant as a warm-up for this summer time’s Copa America. A sport in opposition to Brazil on Wednesday will serve the identical objective.
However for all the USMNT’s speak of progress underneath Berhalter prematurely of the event, the staff was outplayed and outclassed on each a part of the sphere in opposition to Colombia. The efficiency was so weak that Berhalter labeled it “disrespectful.”
“From the seventy fifth minute on, it was, I feel, an absence of respect for our opponent, the sport of soccer, what we have been doing,” Berhalter mentioned, per The Athletic. “We’re not framing it as a lesson realized. We’re really framing it as a wake-up name.”
The USMNT by no means seemed aggressive in opposition to Colombia. The place the U. S. was informal, Colombia was intense. When the U. S. made foolish errors, Colombia capitalized on them.
FIFA’s official rankings place the USMNT because the Eleventh-best staff on the earth and Colombia because the twelfth. The gulf in high quality between the 2 was clear sufficient to render these rankings laughable.
There have been loads of particular person errors on the sphere from the Individuals.
Antonee Robinson had considered one of his worst video games for the USMNT, Tim Weah gave the ball away within the ultimate third to present Colombia a objective and Johnny Cardoso seemed out of his depth instead of the injured Tyler Adams.
However the majority of the blame should fall on Berhalter. That is the strongest USMNT we have seen in generations. The beginning 11 in opposition to Colombia all play for main European membership groups. These gamers battle underneath Berhalter in methods they do not underneath different coaches.
With the 2024 Copa America, one of many world’s most-watched tournaments, and the 2026 World Cup going down in the USA, Berhalter has little room for error.
We’re coming into into U. S. Soccer’s largest extended second on the world stage. The USA shouldn’t enable 5 targets at residence.
The USMNT finishes its Copa America prep Wednesday in opposition to Brazil, a staff it carries a 1-18-0 document in opposition to. A loss there won’t value Berhalter his job.
However because the Copa kicks off and the USMNT faces Uruguay, Panama and Bolivia in late June, the stress will enhance. Berhalter might nicely discover himself sacked if his staff cannot end first or second in that pool.
An early Copa America exit would damage for USMNT followers, but when it means the top of the Berhalter period, it might be a blessing in disguise.