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Posted

USMNT June roster (club; caps/goals)

Goalkeepers (4): Matt Freese (New York City FC; 0/0), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew; 3/0), Zack Steffen (Colorado Rapids; 30/0), Matt Turner (Crystal Palace; 51/0)  

Defenders (8): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew; 3/0), Sergiño Dest (PSV; 33/2), Alex Freeman (Orlando City; 0/0), DeJuan Jones (San Jose Earthquakes; 10/0), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse; 19/0), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC; 68/1), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace; 24/1), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 32/3),  

Midfielders (10): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United; 47/8); Tyler Adams (Bournemouth; 44/2), Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps; 0/0), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis; 18/0), Luca de la Torre (San Diego FC; 24/1), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake; 4/0), Jack McGlynn (Houston Dynamo; 4/1), Quinn Sullivan (Philadelphia Union; 0/0); Malik Tillman (PSV; 17/0), Sean Zawadzki (Columbus Crew; 1/0)

Forwards (5): Patrick Agyemang (Charlotte FC; 4/3), Folarin Balogun (Monaco; 17/5); Damion Downs (FC Köln; 0/0), Brian White (Vancouver Whitecaps; 4/1), Haji Wright (Coventry City; 15/4)

Posted

I just took a quick nap and even though I hadn’t been reading about soccer today, I had a dream that saw a USMNT release show and someone fairly past their prime was announced and then they announced CLINT DEMPSEY as a veteran player in the locker room and a super sub off the bench. 

Just be glad that that was only a random dream. 

Posted

i for one like these developments

there must be a sense of competition for place

i have ignored mls for 16 years until poch just gave me a reason to pay attention

i would much rather go to war with a band of brothers and let the chips fall where they may

sa kennedy (paywall)

Spoiler

Friday, May 23, 2025

Mauricio Pochettino sends a message with USMNT shakeup

by Paul Kennedy

Never in its modern history has the USMNT been in such a state of flux a year out from the World Cup.

Successful qualifying campaigns usually took care of things, forming a nucleus of key contributors.

There is no qualifying campaign in 2025. Just the Gold Cup. And the USMNT will head into the Concacaf tournament coming off disastrous performances at its last two major events.

Circumstances have left USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino without the team's core group, or what had been the core group coming out of the 2022 World Cup.

Where do we begin?

We've known for months that the USA would be without Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and Gio Reyna, whose clubs won't release them because of their participation in the Club World Cup, which starts the same day as the Gold Cup.

It isn't certain, though, that Pochettino would have even called up Reyna, who played just 21 minutes at the Concacaf Nations League finals in March and is out of favor at Borussia Dortmund.

The bombshell came on Wednesday with the news that Christian Pulisic would not be playing at the Gold Cup. On Thursday, U.S. Soccer released a statement from sporting director Matt Crocker that “Christian and his team" asked for a summer break, given his heavy load the last two seasons at AC Milan, and it was "the collective decision that this is the right moment for him to get the rest he needs."

ESPN reported that Pulisic has been dealing with a chronic hip flexor injury, but that didn't stop widespread outrage on social media and among pundits that the face of the program would sit out the summer -- and the federation would let him.

Following Thursday's release of the 27-player camp roster -- a maximum of 26 players will go to the Gold Cup -- Pochettino said on a media call that he backed the decision.

"Many people can say it's really important for us to be all together for the last time before the World Cup," he said. "We decided the best for him, the best of the team, the best for the national team is the decision that we made."
'Sometimes we give too much importance knowing to be together'

Pochettino downplayed the importance of having the USMNT together. It will get up to five weeks and eight matches (two friendlies and six Gold Cup games) in what is only the fifth gathering since he took over -- and with only five more (if you include a January 2026 camp) to follow before the team for the 2026 World Cup is picked.

"Sometimes we give too much importance knowing to be together," he said, "and sometimes the group maybe sometimes doesn't work in this way or build in this way."

But Pulisic's absence was just the tip of the iceberg.

Also absent will be Yunus Musah for what Pochettino described as "personal reasons" -- as late as Monday, he said Musah was still in the squad -- and Antonee Robinson, who missed the Nations League with a tendon injury in his knee and has been training infrequently this spring with Fulham. ("The situation still is not clear," according to Pochettino, following recent visits Robinson made to specialists.)

That makes five World Cup 2022 starters plus Reyna who won't be at the Gold Cup. But the list of absentees did not end there.

Joe Scally, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Tanner Tessmann and Josh Sargent, who all started one or both games at the Nations League, were dropped in what Pochettino called "football decisions" without getting into the specifics of their situations.

With just nine out of 20 outfield players from the Nations League team picked for the Gold Cup, that has created unprecedented turnover in the USMNT "A" squad from one window to the next.

Diego Luna, Jack McGlynn, Max Arfsten, Patrick Agyemang and Brian White, none without previous experience on the "A" team, have emerged as Pochettino favorites and return from the Nations League team.

“My feeling in all these camps — from October, November, January and March — I think many players, they took the chance and deserve again to come back,” he said. “Because they not only performed and behaved well in the camp, after that they kept performing in their teams.”

Back for the first time since Pochettino took charge are Sergiño Dest and Folarin Balogun, both absent for much of their 2024-25 seasons with injuries. Getting their first call-ups since last fall are Malik Tillman, Brenden Aaronson, Luca de la Torre and Haji Wright, the latter three World Cup 2022 holdovers.

Uncapped Alex Freeman, Sebastian Berhalter, Quinn Sullivan and Damion Downs have never attended a senior national team camp. In the case of Freeman and Berhalter, they were on no one's radar three months ago, but they have parlayed a strong start to their seasons with their MLS teams into a shot on the national team.


'You have the possibility to defend your place'

Pochettino looks at it as more than a shot, it's their job to lose, as he explained in laying out what will be first conversation he'll have when the USMNT gathers June 1 in Chicago ahead of friendlies against Turkey and Switzerland:

"Listen, guys. You have the possibility to defend your place. When you are now in the national team, it is not because you are here to try to replace people that (are) sure that (they are) going to be here. No, you have the possibility to defend your place. How you are going to defend your place, that is the important thing for us. You need to fight, you need to show attitude, the right attitude, but not only that, perform, and be brave, and follow the rules that we set in the group."

While Pochettino seemed to downplay the importance of having his players together for a long time in defending the decision to allow Pulisic to skip the Gold Cup, he was quite clear about what he expected of his players when they are with the team. ("Rules" came up several times.)

"I think what we want to create in our national team is people desperate to come, but desperate to come to perform,” he said. “To perform means follow the rules, create a good atmosphere, be part of the team. Be able, in every single aspect, [to meet] our demands."

Pochettino said there is no more time to waste: "If you arrive to the camp and you want to spend a nice time, play golf, go for a dinner, visit my family, visit my friend, is that the culture that we want to create? No, no, no, no, no."

"What we want to do," he added, "is to go to the national team, arrive and be focused. And spend all my focus and energy on the national team. Because we need to create this culture about winning and we need to chase our aim. If we want to be good in one year’s time, we need to think that today is the most important day."

 

Posted

I kind of don’t care about most of the team right now. I don’t care about the Gold Cup. I don’t care about the players in the Club World Cup. Basically, I don’t care about the USMNT and the run up to next year’s World Cup.

I would have liked to have seen Nottingham beat Chelsea today, but they failed and are now in the Euro Freshman League (not the actual name).

Having a “Golden Generation” peak at the age of 21 and then coast along kind of gets boring. We know this group’s ceiling and it’s meh.

 

Posted

I hope this doesn’t qualify as a hawt take, but tbh my interest in this World Cup cycle is waning pretty badly right now. This version of the USMNT isn’t extremely likeable and chronically underachieves, Poch doesn’t seem to give a fuck, ticket prices will be astronomical, and it’s going to be one giant corporate fuck fest. FIFA is a giant corrupt piece of shit, Infantino is a disgusting human being, and there’s the kind of cloak room aspect that I won’t get into because this isn’t the right place. There was a time when I was really looking forward to this and would have told you I’m ready to pay whatever price to go to a game. But at this point, I can’t predict the future, but I think it’s equally likely that I barely even pay attention next year. 

Posted
On 5/23/2025 at 3:55 PM, Hagbard Celine said:

i for one like these developments

there must be a sense of competition for place

i have ignored mls for 16 years until poch just gave me a reason to pay attention

i would much rather go to war with a band of brothers and let the chips fall where they may

sa kennedy (paywall)

  Hide contents

Friday, May 23, 2025

Mauricio Pochettino sends a message with USMNT shakeup

by Paul Kennedy

Never in its modern history has the USMNT been in such a state of flux a year out from the World Cup.

Successful qualifying campaigns usually took care of things, forming a nucleus of key contributors.

There is no qualifying campaign in 2025. Just the Gold Cup. And the USMNT will head into the Concacaf tournament coming off disastrous performances at its last two major events.

Circumstances have left USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino without the team's core group, or what had been the core group coming out of the 2022 World Cup.

Where do we begin?

We've known for months that the USA would be without Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and Gio Reyna, whose clubs won't release them because of their participation in the Club World Cup, which starts the same day as the Gold Cup.

It isn't certain, though, that Pochettino would have even called up Reyna, who played just 21 minutes at the Concacaf Nations League finals in March and is out of favor at Borussia Dortmund.

The bombshell came on Wednesday with the news that Christian Pulisic would not be playing at the Gold Cup. On Thursday, U.S. Soccer released a statement from sporting director Matt Crocker that “Christian and his team" asked for a summer break, given his heavy load the last two seasons at AC Milan, and it was "the collective decision that this is the right moment for him to get the rest he needs."

ESPN reported that Pulisic has been dealing with a chronic hip flexor injury, but that didn't stop widespread outrage on social media and among pundits that the face of the program would sit out the summer -- and the federation would let him.

Following Thursday's release of the 27-player camp roster -- a maximum of 26 players will go to the Gold Cup -- Pochettino said on a media call that he backed the decision.

"Many people can say it's really important for us to be all together for the last time before the World Cup," he said. "We decided the best for him, the best of the team, the best for the national team is the decision that we made."
'Sometimes we give too much importance knowing to be together'

Pochettino downplayed the importance of having the USMNT together. It will get up to five weeks and eight matches (two friendlies and six Gold Cup games) in what is only the fifth gathering since he took over -- and with only five more (if you include a January 2026 camp) to follow before the team for the 2026 World Cup is picked.

"Sometimes we give too much importance knowing to be together," he said, "and sometimes the group maybe sometimes doesn't work in this way or build in this way."

But Pulisic's absence was just the tip of the iceberg.

Also absent will be Yunus Musah for what Pochettino described as "personal reasons" -- as late as Monday, he said Musah was still in the squad -- and Antonee Robinson, who missed the Nations League with a tendon injury in his knee and has been training infrequently this spring with Fulham. ("The situation still is not clear," according to Pochettino, following recent visits Robinson made to specialists.)

That makes five World Cup 2022 starters plus Reyna who won't be at the Gold Cup. But the list of absentees did not end there.

Joe Scally, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Tanner Tessmann and Josh Sargent, who all started one or both games at the Nations League, were dropped in what Pochettino called "football decisions" without getting into the specifics of their situations.

With just nine out of 20 outfield players from the Nations League team picked for the Gold Cup, that has created unprecedented turnover in the USMNT "A" squad from one window to the next.

Diego Luna, Jack McGlynn, Max Arfsten, Patrick Agyemang and Brian White, none without previous experience on the "A" team, have emerged as Pochettino favorites and return from the Nations League team.

“My feeling in all these camps — from October, November, January and March — I think many players, they took the chance and deserve again to come back,” he said. “Because they not only performed and behaved well in the camp, after that they kept performing in their teams.”

Back for the first time since Pochettino took charge are Sergiño Dest and Folarin Balogun, both absent for much of their 2024-25 seasons with injuries. Getting their first call-ups since last fall are Malik Tillman, Brenden Aaronson, Luca de la Torre and Haji Wright, the latter three World Cup 2022 holdovers.

Uncapped Alex Freeman, Sebastian Berhalter, Quinn Sullivan and Damion Downs have never attended a senior national team camp. In the case of Freeman and Berhalter, they were on no one's radar three months ago, but they have parlayed a strong start to their seasons with their MLS teams into a shot on the national team.


'You have the possibility to defend your place'

Pochettino looks at it as more than a shot, it's their job to lose, as he explained in laying out what will be first conversation he'll have when the USMNT gathers June 1 in Chicago ahead of friendlies against Turkey and Switzerland:

"Listen, guys. You have the possibility to defend your place. When you are now in the national team, it is not because you are here to try to replace people that (are) sure that (they are) going to be here. No, you have the possibility to defend your place. How you are going to defend your place, that is the important thing for us. You need to fight, you need to show attitude, the right attitude, but not only that, perform, and be brave, and follow the rules that we set in the group."

While Pochettino seemed to downplay the importance of having his players together for a long time in defending the decision to allow Pulisic to skip the Gold Cup, he was quite clear about what he expected of his players when they are with the team. ("Rules" came up several times.)

"I think what we want to create in our national team is people desperate to come, but desperate to come to perform,” he said. “To perform means follow the rules, create a good atmosphere, be part of the team. Be able, in every single aspect, [to meet] our demands."

Pochettino said there is no more time to waste: "If you arrive to the camp and you want to spend a nice time, play golf, go for a dinner, visit my family, visit my friend, is that the culture that we want to create? No, no, no, no, no."

"What we want to do," he added, "is to go to the national team, arrive and be focused. And spend all my focus and energy on the national team. Because we need to create this culture about winning and we need to chase our aim. If we want to be good in one year’s time, we need to think that today is the most important day."

 

After reading that I agree with you. 

Posted
On 5/25/2025 at 9:30 PM, tokamak said:

I hope this doesn’t qualify as a hawt take, but tbh my interest in this World Cup cycle is waning pretty badly right now. This version of the USMNT isn’t extremely likeable and chronically underachieves, Poch doesn’t seem to give a fuck, ticket prices will be astronomical, and it’s going to be one giant corporate fuck fest. FIFA is a giant corrupt piece of shit, Infantino is a disgusting human being, and there’s the kind of cloak room aspect that I won’t get into because this isn’t the right place. There was a time when I was really looking forward to this and would have told you I’m ready to pay whatever price to go to a game. But at this point, I can’t predict the future, but I think it’s equally likely that I barely even pay attention next year. 

 

 Come back to this post on June 11th, 2026 and tell us you still feel that way. 

My dad HATED soccer so I never even knew we had the World Cup in the US in 1994, much less that we had a game 20 minutes from my house. I have a 7-year-old who is now super into soccer and I will be taking him to as many games as we can possibly go to. 20 years from now, the memories of having that experience is going to far outweigh any cloak room aspects that are happening in our current time. 

I don't disagree with any of the other things you mentioned, but my unsolicited advice is not to let those things rob you of an awesome experience we will likely not have again in our lifetime. 

  • Hook 'Em 1
Posted

The only thing I worry about as far as the World Cup and attending is how much will it cost me? I totally want to go, there will be 7 games an hour from me, but I am pretty sure it will cost me no less that $1500 a person to go. I hope not, but that's what I feel.

Posted
1 hour ago, LurkingHorn said:

 

 Come back to this post on June 11th, 2026 and tell us you still feel that way. 

My dad HATED soccer so I never even knew we had the World Cup in the US in 1994, much less that we had a game 20 minutes from my house. I have a 7-year-old who is now super into soccer and I will be taking him to as many games as we can possibly go to. 20 years from now, the memories of having that experience is going to far outweigh any cloak room aspects that are happening in our current time. 

I don't disagree with any of the other things you mentioned, but my unsolicited advice is not to let those things rob you of an awesome experience we will likely not have again in our lifetime. 

You may very well be right. Like a lot of other people I had big reservations about holding the tournament in Qatar, and I still ended up watching damn near every minute. The tournament itself is far too compelling not to.

I won't keep belaboring the point, but right now there is pretty much no aspect of this that is trending positively for my interest level. A year is a long time though, so we'll see.

Posted
1 hour ago, Captain Ron said:

The only thing I worry about as far as the World Cup and attending is how much will it cost me? I totally want to go, there will be 7 games an hour from me, but I am pretty sure it will cost me no less that $1500 a person to go. I hope not, but that's what I feel.

That is crazy talk. 

Posted

one thing is certain

95% of the tickets to us matches will go to people who do not deserve them

group (exhibition) games for big names will be accessible for $1000

r32 and r16 with big names will be $2-3k on the secondary market with no face value access for the unconnected

quarters and beyond basically forget about it unless you have walkaway money AND connections, otherwise secondary market will be $5k just to get in, decent seats $7-10k

  • Hook 'Em 1
Posted

I'm signed up with FIFA for the ticket announcement or whatever. What are my actual odds at landing a couple of tickets to a US group stage game? I honestly don't know any other way to try to get them except paying crazy fees on the secondary market. 

  • Hook 'Em 1
Posted (edited)

Having shitty Fox with broadcast rights doesn’t help.   They are awful.  Rob Stone is fine, but Lalas is fucking horrible so is Stu Holden.   They will probably force Toucan Lloyd on us too  

I miss promos like this.

 

 

Edited by Ted Lange
Posted
On 5/27/2025 at 10:47 AM, Captain Ron said:

I'm talking about going to all of the games, not just a single one.

Ah. Makes more sense. That's not too bad then is it? 

Posted

i care a bunch

from '88 through korea the question about the full international united states was: "can we"

from korea through last month the question has been "will we"

we're back to "can we" and i find it extremely fascinating to watch what happens good or bad because i have zero idea what to expect

  • Hook 'Em 2
Posted
7 hours ago, tokamak said:

Are we at the point yet where we can stop giving a shit about Reyna for at least a while? I'm ready.

He’s actually likely to play for Dortmund in the Club World Cuo this summer. Watch him bag a few goals now. 🤣

Posted

sa

sciaretta

Spoiler

Thursday, June 5, 2025
USMNT’s summer sweepstakes: Those with the most to gain – and with the most to lose

The U.S. men’s national team has opened camp in Chicago ahead of two pre-Gold Cup friendlies against Turkey on Saturday and Switzerland on Tuesday. After the team came up short in March, Mauricio Pochettino has made several changes to his team in the hopes that he can find a group of players who fit well together. 

What should interest fans, players and the media right now is that for all the talk of whether this roster is the “A” team or a hybrid “A/B” team, the truth is that we have no idea of what the “A” team is. The players don’t know and even Pochettino might not know. It is a perfect clean slate. 

After the mess in March when the USMNT lost to Panama and Canada at the Nations League, combined with a Copa America under Gregg Berhalter where the team didn’t get out of group play on home soil, there are far fewer untouchables that people previously assumed. 

Pochettino has always been known to be ruthless as a coach. He has never been afraid to cut veterans and go with newer options who are not as proven. He has now had four camps with the team, and he can begin making tough decisions. Some of the decisions seem harsh but make sense.  

For example, Josh Sargent isn’t on the team despite making the English Championship Team of the Season. It always seemed like Sargent would be with the team. But he hasn’t scored for the USMNT since 2019, and his two camps (October 2024 and March 2025) under Pochettino were underwhelming. Now, Sargent must make way for others to get their chance. If they take advantage of the opportunity, Sargent could be on the outside-looking-in next summer. 

Sargent isn’t the only noticeable healthy player left off the team either. Add Joe Scally, Aidan Morris, Alex Zendejas (now that Club America will not be in the Club World Cup), Tanner Tessmann, John Tolkin, Caleb Wiley, Gianluca Busio, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty, Richy Ledezma. All have been in previous Pochettino camps or were thought to be in line for a shot.

Every player is in a unique situation, but for some players this is a message that things must be better for them to get another look. Longtime fans of the USMNT program will recall when Jurgen Klinsmann left off Landon Donovan from the 2014 World Cup team, he said that Donovan would be on the first flight to Brazil if there was an injury. This appears to be different from Pochettino, and it is easy to draw a conclusion that for some players, Pochettino simply doesn’t want them there regardless. For example, even when Folarin Balogun had to withdraw from the team over the weekend, Sargent was still not called. 

For some players, it might be because Pochettino doesn’t rate them. For others, he might want to see how they respond and maybe leaving them off the team could light a spark to generate enthusiasm for the program if there is a future call-up.

But regardless of those on the outside of the team, those who made this team now have the opportunity and the inside track to be part of the team in the year leading to the World Cup. It might not matter how well Sargent, Tolkin, Scally or Morris play for the remainder of 2025 if Max Arfsten, Patrick Agyemang, Brian White, Alex Freeman or Sebastian Berhalter impress in the coming month.

If that happens, future roster spots will belong to those who most recently delivered good performances for the team and the coach. That’s the nature of competition, and it is something the team has been missing. 

Not all players are in an equal position. Some have a huge opportunity to gain ground, others have more to lose. Here are the players in both situations with USMNT in the coming month. 
Those with the most to gain

• Max Arfsten: It has always been an ongoing question who is the backup to Antonee Robinson at left back? Many figured that Tolkin or Wiley would be at the Gold Cup. But Pochettino instead turned to the Columbus Crew wingback. With Robinson not at camp due to surgery and DeJuan Jones forced to withdraw, Arfsten has a huge opportunity and should play a lot of minutes at left back. His only competition now is either Tim Ream, who is 37 and doesn’t offer much offense from the position, or Sergino Dest, who can play left back but has primarily been a right back for the U.S. team. 

• Patrick Agyemang and Brian White: Agyemang and White have been involved in both camps in 2025. Now they look like they will be taking a bigger role in the absence of Ricardo Pepi, Sargent and Balogun. Pepi is likely held in high regard by Pochettino after his performances in the fall, but there are still open roster spots for Agyemang and White – who are both different. White is a close-range finisher with impressive size while Agyemang is more mobile. A good month by either or both could make a World Cup spot theirs to lose.

• Damion Downs: The young Cologne forward is in a slightly different position than White or Agyemang. He’s a forward, but this is his first USMNT and his youth national team experience is limited. He is behind others, but that doesn’t mean he can’t make up ground. Downs is coming off a very good season with Cologne, where he scored 11 goals across all competitions and helped the team to promotion to the Bundesliga. That gives him a great stage heading into the year before the World Cup. But there is also a longer-term play for him. At just 20 years old — he turns 21 the day of the Gold Cup final — this is important for him just to get involved in the program. He will be 24 in 2030 and 28 in 2034. Even if he doesn’t make the 2026 World Cup team, he is an important prospect for the future. 

• Sebastian Berhalter: The Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder has taken his game to another level in 2025 and that has seen him rewarded with a call-up. Despite being suspended for the final, Berhalter was critical in helping the Caps advance to the Concacaf Champions Cup final and he is also a big factor in their first place standing. That is why he got the call-up likely over Morris and Tessmann (with Weston McKennie already out due to the Club World Cup). Being the son of the former USMNT head coach and World Cup defender, Berhalter will naturally be the center of an interesting storyline, but if he can stay at the level he has been in recent months, he might stick around. 

• Alex Freeman: Dest will likely be seen as the starting right back this month. But with Scally left off the team along with Marlon Fossey (who was Scally’s backup in recent months while Dest recovered from his knee injury), Freeman has a golden opportunity. Dest still has only played limited minutes since his return and likely can’t consistently give full-90 outings. It’s hard to see how Freeman won’t play a lot. He is young at age 20, and he is only in his first full season as a starter for Orlando. But he brings a lot of athleticism to the position (his father was NFL great Antonio Freeman) and that might be enticing for Pochettino if Freeman plays well. 

• Paxten Aaronson: The younger Aaronson brother has been involved with the USMNT before but this is different. Now he is no longer seen as a future prospect, but rather he is a player who is more ready to be able to contribute now. This past season, he was on loan to FC Utrecht and emerged as one of the top young players in the Eredivisie. His parent club, Eintracht Frankfurt, is looking forward to his return as they prepare for the Champions League. Aaronson might be able to overtake Gio Reyna and players who did make this roster, such as Malik Tillman and even his brother Brenden.

• Quinn Sullivan: Without Tim Weah, Christian Pulisic or even Zendejas on this roster, the U.S. team is short on players who attack from wide positions. Players like Luna, Tillman, or either Aaronson brother can play outside as a second position, but Sullivan is more comfortable at it than those players. Sullivan arrives in camp in the middle of another strong season for Philadelphia and he has an opportunity in the month ahead that could be surprisingly significant.

• Luca de la Torre: The USMNT veteran has been out of the team since Pochettino’s first camp last October after dealing with injuries and a lack of playing time at Celta Vigo. Now on loan with San Diego FC, he is in good form and is playing regularly again. He brings experience, quality, and the benefit of not having been part of the team’s recent problems. Without Yunus Musah, McKennie, Tessmann and Morris, there should be minutes for him.

• Walker Zimmerman: Aside from Chris Richards, none of the central defenders in the USMNT pool are currently playing well. At 32, Zimmerman is older but not too old and could reemerge with the national team as a more reliable option after not having played with the team in the poor performances at the Copa America and Nations League
Those with the most to lose

• Johnny Cardoso: The central midfielder has been very impressive at the club level starting with Internacional followed by Real Betis. But he’s been with the USMNT since 2020 and has yet to see his club form translate to the USMNT. He should play a big role for Pochettino this month, but if he fails to take advantage of the opportunity, he could just continue to remain in a backup role for the team. 

• Mark McKenzie: The Toulouse central defender has been a regular for Pochettino in the first three international camps but performances have been mixed at best. If he doesn’t play well this month, he might move from inside of the roster bubble to the outside. 

• Tim Ream: It feels like every camp Ream is attempting to prove Father Time has not come for him yet. Eventually, Ream will succumb to age, but we don’t know exactly when. There have been some hints this season in Charlotte that he might have lost a step. Yes, he still brings positive experience to a team but once he loses too much of his ability, Pochettino might move on. 

• Matt Turner: It is hard to believe that after multiple seasons of barely playing, Turner is still the No. 1 for the USMNT. But that is because no one else has made a compelling case or is available (both Zack Steffen and Patrick Schulte are injured). But as long as he’s a backup at the club level, Turner is at risk every time he reports to USMNT duty. One bad camp could see him moving to a backup role there as well. 

• Malik Tillman: After another very good club season with PSV and with no Reyna on the roster, Tillman should play a lot this month for the USMNT. But like Cardoso, his club form has yet to translate over to the USMNT since his first call-up nearly three years ago. The longer that continues, the more he runs the risk of remaining in a backup role.

• Brenden Aaronson: The Leeds United midfielder/winger was left off the USMNT roster in March and that might have been a blessing in disguise as he was 6,000 miles removed from the disaster that unfolded. But it also showed that Pochettino is hesitant about him. He has been a regular for a long time and he had a good season, playing a lot to help Leeds earn promotion. But his grip on a roster spot is tenuous and he has a lot to lose with a bad camp. 

• Jack McGlynn: While Pochettino made several changes to the USMNT midfield from March, McGlynn remains on the team. His January camp along with a decent shift off the bench in the loss to Panama helped his case, but by no means is he a lock. He needs to play well or else he could fall behind Tessmann, Morris, and others come the fall. 

 

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sa

daily

kennedy and woitalla

Spoiler

In today's SA Confidential, John Shrader talks with former USMNT star Clint Dempsey, the latest addition to the growing list of former players in the podcast business. Dempsey has joined the Men in Blazers Media Network, hosting a weekly show, The Deuce. which debuts today.

Soccer America Daily is edited by Paul Kennedy and Mike Woitalla.

USMNT
Basement soccer boosted Aaronson brothers’ skills
A New Jersey basement played a key role in soccer upbringing of Brenden and Paxten Aaronson, who are poised to enter USMNT sibling history.

Brenden, at 24, is three years older than Paxten. They grew up playing in their backyard but also competed underground — before and after dinner. The Gold Cup presents them a chance to become second brothers to appear in a competitive U.S. national team game.

• Paxten on the basement ball: “We built a mini-pitch with carpet and taped goals on the wall. There were huge concrete poles and we played off the wall. We broke a lot of lights.”

• Brenden on dungeon lessons: “My dad called it the dungeon. A lot of the things that we do today, like the turns, all probably come from just playing on the wall and doing turns. A lot of shielding and being creative to try to get around each other on the tiniest pitch ever.”

• The sister: At first Jaden, who’s three years younger than Paxten, was the “halftime show,” doing cartwheels across the lawn. But she too took the sport. Villanova celebrated its successful recruitment of the all-South Jersey midfielder last November.

• Trivia: Of seven sets of brothers who played in the same USMNT game, only James and Russ Murphy of St. Louis played in a competitive game: World Cup qualifiers against Canada in 1957. A 1-0 friendly win over Costa Rica in 1988 marked the most recent brothers appearance, by Ken and Steve Snow.

• Gold Cup roster (official): A fourth addition to the team from the initial selection of 27 players (with four goalkeepers) was made when John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel) replaced Sergiño Dest (PSV), who was withdrawn "to have an individualized training program for the summer so he can focus on being fully recovered and ready to perform next season," according to USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino.

 

By the Numbers: Gold Cup roster

15. Players based in MLS.
13. MLS Homegrown products.
7. Philadelphia Union Homegrown products.
10. Players who played at least one season of college soccer.
4. Players who played four seasons in college.
11. Players on foreign teams.
3. Players who grew up abroad.


SOCCER MEDIA WATCH
Club World Cup commentators selected


DAZN and American broadcasters TNT Sports (24 games on TNT, TBS and truTV) and TelevisaUnivision (18 games on Univision, UniMás and TUDN) have announced studio and match commentators for Club World Cup, which kicks off on June 14.

Play-by-play voices for English-language will Include Luke Wileman, Tony Husband, Andres Cantor and Kevin Egan. English-language analysts Include Steve McManaman, Juan Pablo Angel, Brian Dunseth, Mo Adams, Conor Coady and Brad Guzan.

Top TUDN commentators include Daniel Nohra, Ana Caty Hernández, Marc Crosas and Hugo Salcedo.

• New UEFA Women’s Champions League home: CBS Sports secured the exclusive U.S. English-language rights to the expanded UEFA Women’s Champions League from the 2025-26 season through 2029-30. Paramount+ will stream all 75 matches each season with select matches also airing on CBS Sports Network and Golazo Network.


YOUTH SOCCER
USA seeded at Under-17 Women’s World Cup

The USA will play Ecuador, China and Norway in Group C at the 2025 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup.

The 24-team tournament has become an annual event and will be held Oct. 17-Nov. 8 at four venues in Morocco. Like the U-17 men’s tournament in Qatar, the women’s competition will be held each year in Morocco.

• U.S. U-17 men: Gonzalo Segares‘ U-17s, who are preparing the U-17 World Cup in Qatar, fell to Sweden 3-2 in the first of three games in Spain. Chase Adams (Columbus Crew 2) scored both U.S. goals.


UEFA NATIONS LEAGUE
Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams dazzle

• Spain 5 France 4: Starlets Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams cut France’s makeshift defense to ribbons as Spain moved into Sunday's Nations League final against Portugal. La Roja led 4-0 and 5-1 before Les Bleus suddenly woke up and scored three late goals.
Screen Shot 2025-06-05 at 10.44.31 PM

• What They're Saying: "Spanish goal scorer Mikel Merino told DAZN: “It was a crazy game. Not the best game for the coaches—nobody wants to concede so many goals—but an amazing game for the fans. We’re going to remember this one for a long time.”


WORLD CUP 2026 QUALIFYING
Uzbekistan seals soccer dream

Uzbekistan is heading to the World Cup for the first time a feat that caps years of progress in a part of the world not known for its soccer prowess.

Jordan also made history by qualifying for its first World Cup, while the pair will be joined in next year’s tournament by perennial participant South Korea as well as Japan and Iran, which had both already wrapped up berths in the 48-team finals.

Qualifiers (10):
Co-hosts (3): USA, Canada, Mexico.
Asia (5): Japan, Iran, *Uzbekistan, *Jordan, South Korea.
Oceania (1): New Zealand.
South America (1): Argentina.


FRIDAY MORNING: WHAT WE’RE READING

• Iranians’ World Cup dream shattered by U.S. travel ban By Payam Doost Mohamadi (AFP)

A year out from kick-off, Iranian soccer fans are watching their World Cup dream slip away after a U.S. travel ban barred them from entering the land of “Great Satan” to cheer on their team.


• U.S. state department says World Cup fans ‘want to see’ Donald Trump’s travel ban By Alexander Abnos (The Guardian)

• NWSL OKs intraleague loans; Boston, Denver get more expansion cash By Jeff Kassouf (ESPN)

• Denver NWSL finalizes ownership headlined by stars like Mikaela Shiffrin, Peyton Manning By Braidon Nourse (Denver Post)

• New lawsuit challenges restrictions on high school NIL deals, transfers By Amanda Christovich (Front Office Sports)

• Finland coach apologizes for mistakenly calling up retired 51-year-old instead of 23-year-old By Ben Morse (CNN)

 

 

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reminder:

us-turkey

tomorrow saturday 7th

hartford

2:30 central

TNT

truTV

Tele

Universo

Max

Peacock

Spoiler

if i lived in boston or new york (or even philly) i would go - the get-in price is $57 - it's in a non-mls city so there will be zero enforcement of seating once in the stadium and the sheeple fans will not travel for this game with all of the big names missing - this opportunity does not come around often, i.e. get in for what in 2025 is 'cheap' and 'sit where you want', probably midfield 20 rows up, i.e. the perfect location

if anyone challenges you, "you're phone just died" but you know you are in the right section - there will be empty seats galore because turkey is not colombia

 

  • Hook 'Em 1
Posted

the deuce

new gfop podcast

 

sa confidential

mail.thumb.webp.14ba7d72cb684f80e1fb1689a5720099.webp

Spoiler

Add the name Clint Dempsey to the growing list of former players in the podcast business. Dempsey has joined the Men in Blazers Media Network, hosting a weekly show, The Deuce. which debuts on Friday.

Roger Bennett’s media company says it’s a multi-year deal for the former U.S. national team star, who has worked for both CBS Sports and Fox Sports. 

“Clint Dempsey embodies the tenacity that has been at the heart of all that is good about American soccer,” Bennett said. 

As is the norm in today’s media world, Dempsey will be multi-platformed. He will join Bennett for the alternative broadcast of Saturday's U.S. men’s game against Turkey, on TruTV and Max. The traditional broadcast is on TNT. The NBA’s Chris Paul and NFL’s Cam Jordan are lined up to join Bennett and Dempsey.

“I want to speak honestly and directly to the American fan base at an important time for soccer in our country,” Dempsey said, and this provides him that opportunity.  Among the other American stars, past and present, who appear on the Men in Blazers platform: Sam Mewis, Becky Sauerbrunn, Herculez Gomez and Tyler Adams.
Dempsey cards

Dempsey played more than 141 games for the U.S. national team. He played for the Revolution and Sounders in Major League Soccer, sandwiched around a seven-year career in the English Premiere League with Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur. 

The 42-year-old Dempsey has six children and says he’s happy they will have a chance to see him in his soccer element. 

“They didn’t get to see me play,” he said in the first episode of his show. “At least they get to see me around the game.”

Bennett is aggressively expanding his enterprise. His company recently added the U.S. supporter platform USMNT Only to its lineup.

“Clint is hungry to become the voice of American soccer,” he said. “And to have him join us at such a pivotal moment, as we charge towards a home World Cup in 2026, is a dream come true for us and for millions of fans.” 

raven

Spoiler

Hail GFOP! 

I type with fingers crackling with joy. Clint Dempsey has joined the Men In Blazers Media Network. A really lovely moment both professionally and personally. We have been looking for a voice for our coverage of the U.S. men’s team as we crash towards a World Cup on home turf. It feels like the best of times, the worst of times right now, right? I ran into Clint when we both spoke on a panel during a conference at MetLife Stadium. I was blown away by his careful, measured analysis of how the United States team has fallen into such a rut at the worst moment, and what it will take to get them battle ready come June 2026. He spoke with insight, passion, and with stories of his own experience, and we kept the conversation going long after the panel had finished. Clint talked about wanting to engage with American fans in a thoughtful, honest way before and after games on this journey we are about to walk together. And here we are. We sketched out a vision for our new show, THE DEUCE, on the back of a beer napkin. And a few weeks later, Episode One is out into the world (listen here or watch on our YouTube channel now). Clint does not hold back. 🇺🇸

Personally, I am ecstatic. I covered the United States team under Klinsmann for ESPN, ultimately living with the squad in the six months up to Brazil 2014, as I directed the ”Hard Knocks” behind-the-scenes experience. (I have not watched the show in a while, but just found Episode Two, and the surging optimism we all felt for the program back then feels like such a nostalgic head-trip.) I always loved interviewing Clint. He did not speak much back then, but once we developed a sense of trust, he was my favorite as he spoke with such tenacity and swagger. A man who had ground his way, against all the odds, from Nacogdoches, Texas to the Premier League, defying all naysayers—and there were many—to establish himself as a profoundly competitive maverick sharpshooter. To now come full circle, and have this gent whose face would be the first I would carve on the side of the Mount Rushmore of American Soccer, join the mission of our network—to be able to listen to his thoughts throughout the summer and into a World Cup on home turf—is proof that life’s journeys can be unexpectedly beautiful. 👑 

Here’s the deal: Clint and I will be working together throughout the summer. We will do some live shows in Austin and Dallas ahead of U.S. games to spend time with you fans across the nation and try to bring some joy together. Tomorrow, Saturday, we will LIVESTREAM THE USA-Türkiye GAME ON TRUtv and HBO MAX alongside NBA star Chris Paul and NFL wonder Cam Jordan. Come and be with us, and have your comments and questions appear on screen throughout our conversation. Let’s talk. Let’s question. Let’s dream. And do it all together. 🍻

To follow The Deuce ♠️: Subscribe to our new YouTube channel and TikTok.

ii. The highlight of my week came Saturday morning when I charged down to Yeadon, PA to spend time with Tyler Adams. Tyler opened the latest of the mini-pitches he has invested in alongside Allstate and the U.S. Soccer Foundation. It was incredible to watch him run a training there for the kids in the area. All I can say is: This, by a thousand. Only through efforts like this—making football accessible and affordable—can the men’s game in reality, match that in our dreams. It was amazing to speak to Tyler about the United States funk, the culture of the squad over the last year, and the kind of leadership it will take to move from darkness towards the light. That interview comes out Monday. 🦅

iii. On a personal tip, I have a childhood friend, James, coming round for dinner tonight. I have not seen him in over 20 years. If you have read my memoir, you will know him from my teen days and early misadventures in Liverpool’s pubs and clubs. I am so excited it is hard to describe these feelings of joy that the English past is about to collide with the American present in such a meaningful way. 🫂

iv. 🚨WASHINGTON, DC, MARYLAND, AND VIRGINIA GFOPS: WE COMING TO YOU JUNE 30 with The Women’s Game’s Sam Mewis and Becky Sauerbrunn to celebrate one of soccer’s greatest rivalries: USA vs. Canada, ahead of the Allstate Continental Classico in DC. We will welcome football icons at DC’s historic Howard Theatre and revel in the past, present, and future of these two storied women’s programs. We hope you join us for what is sure to be a magical night ahead of an unforgettable matchup. Tickets available now. 🏛️ 

🗣️ Save the date July 25 in New York City for a really, really special show. More info coming.

PS - This made my week: The Ferris Bueller vest is going up for auction. I WOULD DIE TO OWN THIS. 🐆
     
 
 
      
News from MiB World HQ 📡

NEXT WEEK, we are heading to Los Angeles to celebrate the massive mark of ONE YEAR TO GLORY in the magnificent kingdom where the first match on U.S. soil for the 2026 World Cup will kick off. We’ll celebrate LA's rich World Cup history, from the '84 Olympics to the '94 and ‘99 World Cups, and all that is building towards 2026. We can’t wait to celebrate with the FIFA World Cup 26 Los Angeles committee and set the stage of what is to come. I will also be appearing on June 9 with all the World Cup city organizers at the Paley Center in New York City to introduce their planning, visions, and wonder to the world. If you are there, come and give me a hug.

ii. The team at The Women's Game had an absolutely epic week even by their lofty standards. Sam welcomed new USWNT (and current Manchester United) goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce on Friendlies after she claimed her first cap at SoFi stadium and to talk about taking over for the legend Alyssa Naeher. Then double-goal-scorer Lynn Biyendolo joined Sam on Good Vibes to recap both USWNT friendlies against China and Jamaica and provide some inside scoop on the culture Emma Hayes is creating around the team. You can find both of those great conversations, and plenty more, on the TWG YouTube channel.

iii. Over on VAMOS, Herc Gomez welcomed Seattle Sounders' Cristian Roldan where he discussed his team's Club World Cup journey, a decade of playing in MLS, and his thoughts on the USMNT and the upcoming Gold Cup. Listen here. 

iv. Lastly, Father's Day is coming up and if you're still looking for something for the football-crazed dad in your life, may I suggest a gift created by two of those very people? Our book, "Men in Blazers Present Gods of Soccer," is on sale right now and is sure to lead to at least one "Huh, I had no idea" moment from your dad or your money back.
     
 
 
      
The USMNT Summer of Destiny Begins 🇺🇸🙏

USMNT v. Türkiye (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, TNT/HBO Max) 🇺🇸 🇹🇷

USMNT v. Switzerland (Next Tuesday, 8 p.m. ET, TNT/HBO Max) 🇺🇸🇨🇭

The World Cup is 370 days away. The United States Men’s National could not appear less ready. After the stinging humiliation of last summer’s Copa America, and the self-immolation of back-to-back Nation’s League losses to Panama and Canada, we head towards a Gold Cup, the last competitive games before the World Cup, with almost all our biggest names missing—some by their own choice. In their place, a squad filled with understudies that best resembles an NFL roster stuffed with replacements during the 1987 strike season. Everyone stay calm. 

Sergiño Dest is the latest USMNT star to pull out of the squad as he continues to return from a torn ACL, even though he made seven club appearances totaling 375 minutes at the back half of the season. “We determined the best decision is for the player to have an individualized training program for the summer so he can focus on being fully recovered and ready to perform next season," Pochettino said. This sounds rational. But on top of the voluntary absences and unorthodox messaging around Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah’s omissions from the squad, it just adds to a sense of inertia around the program.  

There are two schools of thought here: the rational sense that, for Pulisic, who has played 50 club games this season, “He’s too valuable long-term—let him rehab, lock in, and come back sharp for World Cup. It’s the smart move.” But there is also the context; this team has screamed into the abyss since the 2022 World Cup. The players themselves have admitted their fight and the program’s collective mentality has dropped. Pochettino has told them to leave their golf clubs behind, making it clear they have treated international duty like a vacation. This is a critical time for Poch to show he can sew his idea of Grinta—the willingness to suffer in the name of victory—into a squad whose recent displays have been the polar opposite of that. An all-hands-on-deck moment in which commitment, togetherness, and backs against the wall is the only way to go, if the squad is to spark an interest and belief, even amongst their natural diehard fanbase.  

At a time when we do not know who our starting goalkeeper, central defenders, and striker could and should be at the World Cup, this current reality makes our game feel so small in the United States. Either we are not the serious program that we aspire to be, or the Gold Cup is not a serious tournament.   

Having said that, as I wrote in our new United States Men’s National Team-obsessed newsletter, USMNT ONLY 🇺🇸 (subscribe here, and please share this link with your football loving friends), as Albert Einstein once said, "In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity." And for the young, raw squad members, including five first timers, this is an open audition for a World Cup place. A chance to force out a big, established name who has become complacent. They have been handed a chance to make the biggest tournament ever, on home turf, by training so hard they become impossible to ignore. The footballing equivalent of a golden ticket to the Wonka factory. Watch Diego Luna, Sebastian Berhalter, and Quinn Sullivan seize their moment.

Really Thoughtful Analysis of World Cup 2026 as We Hit a Year-Out

The World Cup hits the year-out mark this Wednesday. It will change football forever in this nation. We clatter towards it with the magical news Uzbekistan qualified for the first time in their nation’s history. This sits alongside the parallel narrative of geopolitics and the dark chaos of the travel ban. This Miguel Delaney piece was really a fascinating read: casting an eye on the new format FIFA has created for the tournament. I do believe the World Cup is going to make our host cities sing to the world, but the bloat of 48 teams in 12 groups of four is worth thinking about. The geographical scale, with games far, far away from teams’ bases and time zones. The 17-day group stage features 72 of the 104 matches, which will be played merely to return the field to its current size of 32 teams. Seventy percent of the competition will be spent eliminating a third of the field. 
     
 
 
      

Excited for the 2026 World Cup? Our newly-launched weekly USMNT Only newsletter is your go-to source for backstories, insights and narrative surrounding Poch’s squad in their run to (hopeful) glory. Subscribe now. 🇺🇸
     
 
 
      
More Football Did Ya Say? 📰

    PSG’s victory was ecstatic. It was still sportswashing. Two things can be true.

    Is Tijjani Reijnders the new KDB for Pep Guardiola? 

    Can Burnley, Leeds and Sunderland stay up in a way the three promoted sides have all failed to do the last two seasons?

    Where does this rank in the list of greatest post-match interviews of all-time?

    This makes me so happy. I love this man so much.

     
 
 
      
Incredible Games to Watch Around the World 🌎

World Cup Qualifier: Andorra vs. England (Saturday, 12 p.m. ET, Disney+/Fox Sports) 🇦🇩 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Thomas Tuchel’s England team lead Group K of the World Cup qualifiers, while tomorrow’s opponents, Andorra, are bottom and so far goalless. We’re only two games into qualification, mind, and although nothing is a certainty in football, this should be a match in which Tuchel can continue his audition for next year’s World Cup squad, with his side fourth, and the opposition 173rd in the FIFA rankings. Center-back Trevoh Chalobah could make his debut following a breakout season on loan at Crystal Palace and then back at Chelsea, while one of the coolest men in football, Ivan Toney, returns to the England squad for the first time since Euro 2024, proving that a move to Saudi Arabia does not translate to an international cold shoulder under Tuchel. England’s German manager has had his team sweating through intense heat training in-tents, ahead of a Wet Hot American Summer next year, and with this only his third competitive game in charge of the Three Lions, he’ll likely field a strong team, with Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Cole Palmer all sure to feature in some capacity or other. Andorra is a small city-sized country that’s like a tiny freckle on the border between Spain and France, and because their 3,000 capacity national stadium is currently unavailable, the game will be played in Barcelona’s 40,000-seated RCDE stadium, home of Espanyol. Charli xcx is playing a music festival in the Catalonian capital this weekend, so let’s hope for some brat x England football fan crossover in the stands of the RCDE.

Nations League Final: Portugal vs. Spain (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, Disney+/Fox Sports) 🇵🇹 🇪🇸 

This battle of the Iberian Peninsula pits 17-year-old Ballon d’Or-winner elect, Lamine Yamal, against a man who’s held that golden ball five times, football’s Peter Pan: 40-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo. He scored the winner against Germany in the semi-final of this tournament and Yamal said “hold my Prime”, bagging a brace and a MOTM award in Spain’s breathtaking 5-4 win over France in the other semi yesterday, using his stage to directly barge past Dembélé, Mbappé and Doué in the 2025 Ballon d’Or popularity contest. Portugal’s midfield is more inventive than Sydney Sweeney’s marketing team, and a rich roster that includes Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva and Rúben Neves, can fluidly rotate depending on the game’s requirement. Euro 2024 winners Spain are as close to a club team as an international outfit can be, with Pedri, Zubimendi, Olmo and Gavi having the ability to effortlessly bypass opposition midfields with more triangles than an episode of “Ancient Aliens”. Just over a week after it hosted the Champions League final, Munich’s Allianz Arena rolls out the red carpet again for some of the world’s best footballers, and although this match isn’t as consequential, it’s still a final that’s utterly compelling.

San Diego Wave vs. Seattle Reign (TONIGHT, 10 p.m. ET, Prime) 🇺🇸

Manager of the month Jonas Eidevall and his San Diego side host Lynn Biyendolo’s Seattle Reign as the Wave attempt to go unbeaten in seven. Both sides sit in playoff contention as we near the second half of the regular season, a win for Eidevall’s team would take them within one point of the top. Elsewhere in the NWSL, CONCACAF W Champions Cup winners Gotham FC return to domestic play after defeating Tigres in the final on May 24th. They face league leaders KC Current in what could be Rose Lavelle's first appearance this season (Tomorrow, 1 p.m. ET, CBS).

Big news from the league this week: NWSL OKs intraleague loans, while Boston and Denver get more expansion cash.
     
 
 
      
“This Is Football: The Beautiful Game” 📷📕

An Interview with Author Daniel Melamud

I’m surrounded by a small library of books that are sent to me on a weekly basis, and when Daniel Melamud’s “This Is Football: The Beautiful Game” landed on my desk, it was one that gathered dust for a while. But once I opened it, I could not put it down, finding myself lost in a world of footballing wonder and nostalgia. Through its pictures and words, it is a celebration of the timeless beauty of football—its greatest and most stylish players, from past heroes to today’s stars, along with its hallowed grounds. The photos of old Goodison Park alone make it an absolute heartbeat-of-football treasure that will forever bring me joy. 

Rog: Tell us who you are.

Daniel Melamud: I’m a senior editor at Rizzoli New York. I’ve been a New Yorker for 25 years and have edited books for almost as long. I grew up in London and Brussels, surrounded by books, marveling at the design of them; my life in New York is much the same, only now I’m in the very fortunate position where I can help create those books with colleagues and friends who are as obsessed with them as I am.

R: What is your favorite photograph and why?

DM: I spent three years selecting the 405 photographs in the book from millions of images in Getty’s vast football archive, so asking me to choose between them is like asking me to choose my favorite child, which is impossible because I don’t have kids, but there’s one that stands out. I remember seeing a Nike billboard in London with the words: “Behind every great goalkeeper there’s a ball from Ian Wright.” The image on pages 380-81 shows Wright celebrating the opening goal against Wimbledon with Paul Merson and Patrick Vieira, who provided the assist, at Selhurst Park on November 2, 1996. Merson also scored in that game. I imagine Wright especially enjoyed scoring at his old home ground and since it wasn’t against Crystal Palace, he didn’t hold back on showing it.

“This Is Football: The Beautiful Game” is available wherever you get your books, or you can also find it right here.
     
 
 
      
MiB Mad Libs 📝

This week’s phrase is:

“The one thing that makes me feel most positive about the USMNT is _________”

Email me your submissions to be in contention to win a coveted MiB patch.

We had so many great entries last week. The winner was the mighty GFOP, Steve Shaw: Manchester United without Bruno Fernandez is like Hawaiian pizza without pineapple. It was really bad to begin with and it's still bad without its main ingredient.

Huge love to two cats who made me laugh, Chris Crader’s Manchester United without Bruno Fernandes is like watching paint dry without any actual paint, and Dr. Christopher Kiever: “Manchester United without Bruno Fernandes is like a camper van without Rory Smith.”
     
 
 
      
Not Football and All the Better for It 📖

    Pie and mash shop owners are joining forces to protect this essential cuisine. Honestly, this is my X-Men reboot. 

    You've heard of the Waffle House index, get ready for the BEC indicator: How Inflation Is Hitting a New York City Breakfast Staple.

    It was (re)bound to happen: How Gen Z Is Taking Over the NBA.

    Coolest woman alive: Waxahatchee: She Lives for the Sake of the Song.

    If you've ever wanted to drink a cup of coffee from one of David Lynch's own mugs, here's your chance. Anybody wanna go halfsies on the denim Twin Peaks shirt?

    THIS IS INCREDIBLE: During every Bears game last season, the owner of a Chicago Yarn Shop knit a section of a scarf. Now, Bears Quarterback Caleb Williams is wearing it.

    This song got me through the week: “Never Arriving“ by Allegra Krieger

     
 
 
      
Dear Rog... GFOPs Write ✍️

I loved a long, thoughtful, and frankly beautiful email from Matthew Karnstedt from Palatine, Ill, which I have extracted below. As so many of you finish your studies for the year, it is so timely:

Matthew writes: This letter may seem a few weeks late, but here it is. I'm a high school teacher in the Chicago suburbs, and a longtime Everton supporter (which I do believe goes emotionally hand in hand with my love for the Chicago Bears... but that's a different letter). To me, the Premier League season is a mirror of my own school year - the promise at the beginning of the year, the dregs of January, and finally (at least for the Everton of the last few years), racing to the finish just trying to survive and get to summer.

This year I felt even more of a connection between my work and my football consumption with the closing of Goodison Park. My brother and I were lucky enough to make the pilgrimage last season (a 1-0 victory over Burnley on a wonderful DCL crap goal), and I have felt an especially close connection with the club ever since, deeper than what it had been before. As I watched the scenes from my living room, the moving tributes, the generations of supporters, and the glorious Liverpool sunshine, I was overcome with emotion for a goodbye to a place that, though I've only been once, has become profoundly important in my life. As I reflected on Goodison, I had a revelation as to why these two facets of my life (music and football) are so important—they are the two venues that, in my opinion, remain to be truly collectivist in the face of a society that's becoming ever increasingly focused on individualism. 

Both participating in and performing/playing are activities in which the individual efforts are a contribution to the greater collective goals - whether that is spurring your team on to a scrappy win, going to a concert with the love of your life, creating music with your closest friends, or hearing that Goodison roar one last time. Those are memories that are forever linked with people. With humans. With being human. I think too often we can get caught up in the tribalism, the rivalries, the "us vs. them" narratives - but when I step back, I see people in their continual search for betterment and for a chance at glory, redemption, or just for a nice day out with those they love. 

I guess this letter is more of a thank you to both of you for so joyfully spreading your football love and knowledge. My life is better for having randomly found your podcast in the early days of my football fandom, and I know that it has touched countless other lives. It has helped me stay connected and grounded, not only in my Everton support, but also in connection with the millions of GFOPs and football fans across the world. It has made me see humanity in a different light, and has made me a better teacher and person. 

Rog writes: Matthew, I adore your thinking, and that you are a bloke of action. It makes me so happy you were able to travel over with your brother and experience Goodison. There can be nothing more important than that. The shared experience and bonding through football, or music – that is when we feel most alive. We do have to savor every second. I came across this great line from Anton Chekhov’s Ivanov this week: “This life of ours...human life is like a flower gloriously blooming in a meadow: along comes a goat, eats it up---no more flower.”

Keep sending your stories and questions to meninblazers@gmail.com.

To Better Days Ahead for All.

Let’s not take a moment watching football together for granted and make great memories. Big Love.

Courage,

ROG

 

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Posted
1 hour ago, Hagbard Celine said:

reminder:

us-turkey

tomorrow saturday 7th

hartford

2:30 central

TNT

truTV

Tele

Universo

Max

Peacock

  Hide contents

if i lived in boston or new york (or even philly) i would go - the get-in price is $57 - it's in a non-mls city so there will be zero enforcement of seating once in the stadium and the sheeple fans will not travel for this game with all of the big names missing - this opportunity does not come around often, i.e. get in for what in 2025 is 'cheap' and 'sit where you want', probably midfield 20 rows up, i.e. the perfect location

if anyone challenges you, "you're phone just died" but you know you are in the right section - there will be empty seats galore because turkey is not colombia

 

 

If not for travel plans this weekend I would be there (Boston). I don't care who this squad is, B/C/F-.

I agree this would be dirt cheap to get in and see.

Posted
2 hours ago, Captain Ron said:

If not for travel plans this weekend I would be there (Boston). I don't care who this squad is, B/C/F-.

I agree this would be dirt cheap to get in and see.

 

BOSTON tomorrow:

3:30pm EDT kickoff 

 

IMG_0696.jpeg

Posted
33 minutes ago, Ted Lange said:

So is Tyler Adams hurt, again?

I don't know. I'm kind of over the "golden generation" at this point. None of them can stay on the fucking field. 

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