by For a year without a major tournament (put your hand down, Concacaf Gold Cup), 2023 was a remarkable one for the US men’s national team.
Consider the bleak picture 12 months ago: the team had no permanent head coach and Gregg Berhalter was being investigated by US Soccer for alleged assault, his relationship with sullen star Gio Reyna had broken up, and sporting director Earnie Stewart was about to leave. .
With those issues resolved, 2024 promises to be quieter on the pitch and much louder. The USMNT can look forward to a high-profile tournament, the Copa América, which will be an important benchmark two years from the next World Cup and a referendum on Berhalter’s leadership after he was hired reliably last summer.
So what – apart from, perhaps, an order form for more pairs of recherché sneakers – is in Berhalter’s 2024 inbox as he celebrates five years since taking charge of his first game?
Youth development and the Olympic Games
The 25-man all-MLS roster is training in Orlando ahead of a friendly against Slovenia in San Antonio on January 20. As it is outside the FIFA window, the January camp is a traditional opportunity for the US greenhorns to make their case. According to the federation, since 1999 30 players who won their first or second cap in the USMNT’s opening camp of the year have advanced to the World Cup squad, including nine who went to Qatar in 2022.
Fifteen of this squad are in senior camp for the first time and 13 are young enough to meet the eligibility requirement for France this summer, when the American men will participate in their first Olympics since 2008. The most experienced name on the roster, that is. Miles Robinson, the 26-year-old center back who just joined Cincinnati, is a candidate to fill one of the three over-23 spots.
With the Olympics in mind, Marko Mitrović, USA under-23 head coach, is on Berhalter’s team for this camp. It is logical to expect any standout in France to be rewarded with a long look from Berhalter looking to 2026.
Two exciting 20-year-old Californians, Chivas-bound Cade Cowell and uncapped Real Salt Lake’s Diego Luna, have been named in this squad, although they will have to be impressive to break into an already winger-rich first-choice squad. . – attacking midfielder types. Los Angeles FC midfielder Timmy Tillman, older brother of US international Malik Tillman, hopes to make his debut against Slovenia at Toyota Field, home of USL bijou San Antonio FC.
Busy 22-year-old midfielder Aidan Morris, who has four caps, was a key part of last year’s MLS Cup-winning Columbus team, as was uncapped goalkeeper Patrick Schulte . With Inter Miami’s Drake Callender and Cincinnati’s Roman Celentano also on the roster, a goaltender is sure to make his debut against Slovenia. (Gaga Slonina, the 19-year-old on loan from Chelsea at Belgian club Eupen, is not in this squad.)
To win the Concacaf League of Nations
It may be a friendly gathering, but the two-time defending champions will be looking to complete the hat-trick in Arlington, Texas, in March. The USA will face Jamaica in the semi-finals while Panama meets Mexico. As well as a possible comeback with Mexico to grab the pulse, the games (semi-final or third-place play at that time) will serve as a warm-up for the weightier business of the Copa.
The USA reached this stage with a 4-2 aggregate victory over Trinidad and Tobago last November. After a 3-0 win in the first leg in Austin, they lost 2-1 away from home with a strange applause worthy of a red card from Sergiño Dest. It was a raging way to end 2023, so the defender, and his teammates, will have an added incentive to impress against a Jamaican side that has more talent than T&T.
At least reach the semi-finals in the Copa América
As co-hosts the United States is not asked to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, making this 16-team tournament in June and July a valuable source of highly competitive games in some of the stadiums two years later. With that in mind, these games may be the most important and instructive for Americans between now and 2026.
In the group stage, the USA will face Bolivia (again in Arlington), Panama (Atlanta) and Uruguay (Kansas City) in form. With home advantage, Berhalter’s side should take their first two games with Uruguay’s final deciding the group winners. The quarterfinals will likely pit the United States against a dangerous team from Colombia or Brazil (who have been very happy lately). The United States cannot meet favorites Argentina before the final.
It would be acceptable to repeat the achievement of the Americans in 2016, the previous time they entered and hosted the tournament: they reached the last four. But a better performance against a top country would be important for a team and coach who have yet to prove they can compete with the best in the world.
Jürgen Klinsmann’s side were humiliated 4-0 by Argentina in Houston eight years ago and failed to muster a shot. It’s not even an off-target effort. That average squad included 17-year-old Christian Pulisic but was mostly made up of players from MLS and non-elite European clubs. Berhalter has far more talent at his disposal, so a result that gives his critics an excuse to carp “worse than Klinsmann!” would not exactly contribute to fame.
Prepare for the unexpected
Most of the players and positions in Berhalter’s ideal XI are set, but this year he will look to establish a consistent centre-back partnership (unfortunately, one prime candidate, Chris Richards, has recently played in midfield for Crystal Palace). He will be looking to confirm the identity of his preferred backups, with Dest waiting for 2023 of “learning experiences” and Antonee Robinson’s goal now made it so important that any absence would be a serious blow given the decline in quality between the Fulham man and his understudy.
Remember the rumors before the 2022 World Cup about goalkeeper Matt Turner’s lack of playing time at Arsenal and how rust could reinforce his play? Turner was excellent in Qatar. Then he moved to Nottingham Forest, was rewarded with a regular Premier League start, and … well. Gary Neville is not impressed. Turner’s national team deal is more secure but if he struggles in the Copa it will be more urgent to pursue potential heirs from the next generation.
Meanwhile, Reyna underlined his value with some excellent performances last autumn. With Tyler Adams returning from injury possibly next month, one of the most significant tactical decisions Berhalter will face in the Copa (fitness permitting) will be whether to deploy Reyna as a roaming player against high-quality opposition or play it safer with a more defensive midfield. configuration. Linchpin, or firework?
However, Reyna’s future at Borussia Dortmund is in doubt, especially with Jadon Sancho returning to the club on loan. Could Reyna land a new position that allows him to flourish like Pulisic and Weston McKennie did in Italy? Or stay and stagnate on the sidelines? Berhalter is a keen planner, but sometimes all a coach can do is cross his fingers and hope for the best.
