Laken Litman
College Football & Soccer Analyst
The US men’s national team players have been having small group conversations this week following a 4-0 defeat to Switzerland. With the Gold Cup approaching rapidly, USMNT’s first match will be Sunday against Trinidad and Tobago (6pm for Fox) before finishing Saudi Arabia and Haiti.
“That’s one of them [games] Veteran defender Tim Ream told reporters Friday afternoon. “But you can take many different learning experiences from it. What do you need to reach that level for many of these people? And what do you have to do every day to be able to get them right?
“As much more difficult as the moments after that, it’s how bad it feels to lose our way and play our way. It’s something you have to understand what it takes to get on board and get to that level and compete at that level.”
USMNT hoped to gain momentum before the Gold Cup last week in two send-off matches against quality opponents. The team managed to remove the positivity from the first match, but lost 2-1 to Türkiye, but Switzerland sliced the youthful US side and scored four goals in the first 36 minutes of the match. The result has sparked an overwhelming amount of concern and criticism, especially considering the World Cup will be within 365 days of the home soil.
Although Ream, 37, has not experienced this exact situation in his career, he has endured many highs and lows and abundance of external negativity. He can give his younger teammates some wisdom about how to get things back in the right direction.
“The comprehensive message for us is that this is something like our group now, and this is the person we have to turn to,” Ream said. “Each of us needs to have each other’s backs and we all have to stick together. What’s said outside is that it’s cliché, but it’s noise. There’s nothing we can do about what people say there is.
“It’s just a problem. Let’s bow our heads and let each other go back. Communication is as high as possible, communication is high as possible, and we’ll get through it. It’s a storm, and you can either run away from it or hide from it. And that’s everything you can do.”
John Tolkien, who came as a second half of the alternative and Swiss, repeated similar sentiments.
“The biggest thing is not to beat yourself too much,” said the 22-year-old defender. “Obviously we’re very disappointed and know that’s not enough and it’s not the standard we want to play. But second, when you start to get negative and self-defeating yourself, I think things can go very south.”
USMNT Manager Mauricio Pochettino has endured a four-game winning streak with the team. (Photo: John Dorton/ISI Photos/ussf/getty images)
Tolkin only appeared on USMNT five times. He may be one of the new faces on manager Mauricio Pockettino’s roster this summer, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t experienced adversity in his career. For example, he said that his relegation with German Side Holsteinkiel in his first year in the Bundesliga gave him a unique perspective on what the US team is experiencing now.
“It’s kind of a chaotic time,” Tolkien said. “It may sound like we’re lying, but you really just look at the guy next to you and fight for each training session, each match, each training session. It’s impossible for you to see online, all the media, all the opinions, these days – but you really need to trust that they work their ass for you.
“We now have a great opportunity to change the story and focus on the World Cup that will be coming next summer. That’s what [by winning] this [Gold Cup] Tournaments, that’s what we want to do. And to do that, you need to block all the other noise and focus on all the people in the locker room, the coaching and training staff, and all the people traveling with, all the people who are really working hard to prepare for these games. So, if you can do that, I think you’ll be successful on the field. And hopefully a lighter spirit around. ”
Laken Litman covers Fox Sports’ college football, college basketball and soccer. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and Indianapolis Star. She is the author of Strong Like A Woman, published in Spring 2022 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her @lakenlitman.
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