World Cup co-hosts the United States can be “too honest” in games and need to improve at soccer’s dark arts for their opener against Paraguay, midfielder Cristian Roldan said Tuesday. The USA kicks off their campaign against the highly experienced South Americans on Friday, and are under pressure to top a group also containing Australia […]
Andrew Marszal
Posted inSoccer America Daily
‘It doesn’t matter’: U.S. star Gio Reyna looks past World Cup scandal
U.S. soccer star Gio Reyna on Tuesday said he has put the controversy of the 2022 World Cup behind him and is solely focussed on helping the co-hosts succeed this summer. Four years ago the United States midfielder was almost sent home from Qatar after a bust-up with then-coach Gregg Berhalter, in a lurid row […]
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Hopes soar for US fans as hosts assemble at World Cup camp
Under dazzling blue California skies, the United States soccer team held its first World Cup training session at the co-hosts’ base camp Monday. For the 5,500 local fans with tickets to attend — the lucky ones among a lottery entered by 33,000 — optimism for the tournament about to kick off in their backyard was […]
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World Cup is ‘full circle’ for London-raised U.S. striker Balogun
Raised in London by Nigerian parents, Folarin Balogun didn’t quite know what to expect when he signed up to play for the United States at the World Cup. “I didn’t realize at that moment how big football — soccer — was out here in America,” admitted the striker, who was born in New York, but […]
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Pochettino frustrated by injured Richards’ World Cup status
Coach Mauricio Pochettino on Friday said injured defender Chris Richards will not play in the United States’ friendly against Germany and expressed frustration that the player’s status in the World Cup squad remains in doubt. Crystal Palace center-back Richards has 36 US caps and would likely be Pochettino’s first-choice at the heart of defense alongside […]
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Senegal win can help fans ‘trust’ US World Cup bid, says Pochettino
Coach Mauricio Pochettino said the United States’ impressive 3-2 friendly win over Senegal Sunday can help the American public trust in their national team as the country prepares to host the World Cup. The US, along with Canada and Mexico, is co-hosting the tournament which kicks off June 11, with hopes high that stars like […]
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Pulisic finds form before World Cup as US beat Senegal 3-2
Christian Pulisic ended his goal drought and Folarin Balogun rifled in the winner as a much-improved United States beat Senegal 3-2 in a pre-World Cup friendly in Charlotte on Sunday. The win — and a slick first-half offensive performance powered by Pulisic and Ricardo Pepi — provided a welcome lift for coach Mauricio Pochettino’s co-hosts. […]
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Gritty Socceroos aim to spoil co-hosts’ World Cup party
Efforts to boost soccer in the United States rest heavily on the national team’s success at the World Cup — but their Group D opponents Australia have every intention of crashing the co-hosts’ party. “It’s our role to spoil one part of it,” Socceroos midfielder Aiden O’Neill told AFP on Saturday. “Obviously, I think it’s […]
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Tim Ream to captain World Cup co-hosts USA
Veteran defender Tim Ream will captain the United States at the World Cup, as the co-hosts seek to make a deep run at the tournament which kicks off in less than two weeks, coach Mauricio Pochettino said Saturday. Center-back Ream, 38, who spent over a decade playing for English clubs Fulham and Bolton Wanderers, was […]
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Can World Cup fuel North America’s soccer boom?
Long considered soccer’s last great unconquered market, North America has embraced the beautiful game to a stunning degree over the past few decades — and the upcoming World Cup could accelerate that boom. Visit Miami’s Nu Stadium — one of the roughly dozen Major League Soccer stadiums built across the region in the past decade, […]