Berhalter defiant as U.S. Soccer to review Copa América exit

Berhalter defiant as U.S. Soccer to review Copa América exit

ByJEFF KASSOUF

July 2, 2024, 2:19 AM

KANSAS CITY, Missouri -- Gregg Berhalter said he believed he was still the right man to lead the  United States men's national soccer team, despite crashing out of the 2024 Copa América in the group stage on Monday with a 1-0 loss to Uruguay at Arrowhead Stadium.

The defeat, combined with Panama's 3-1 victory over Bolivia in a simultaneous match in Orlando, Florida, left the Americans in third place in the group. Uruguay advanced as Group C winners, and Panama, which defeated a 10-man USMNT on Thursday, moved onto the quarterfinals as the second qualifier out of the group.

U.S. Soccer Federation sporting director Matt Crocker said in a statement after the game that a review would be conducted into the team's exit.

Asked in his postgame news conference whether he was still the right person to lead the U.S. team into the 2026 World Cup, Berhalter responded with a simple "yes."

However, he admitted that the performances had not been good enough.

"Just to see the guys' faces in the locker room and to see the emotion of the staff and players, we're bitterly disappointed with the results," he said. "We know we're capable of more, and in this tournament, we didn't show it. It's really as simple as that.

"You look at the stage that was set with the fans in this tournament, with the high level of competition in this tournament, and we should have done better. We'll do a review and figure out what went wrong and why it went wrong, but it's an empty feeling right now, for sure."

When asked if he should lead the review of the tournament failure, Berhalter said, "That's not up to me."

Crocker will lead the decision around whether to retain Berhalter.

"Our tournament performance fell short of our expectations. We must do better," Crocker said in a statement following the loss. "We will be conducting a comprehensive review of our performance in Copa América and how best to improve the team and results as we look towards the 2026 World Cup."

Monday's game at Arrowhead Stadium got off to a chippy start. A frenetic first half was interrupted by 14 total fouls and two injuries that required substitutions.

Uruguay winger Maximiliano Araújo left the match on a stretcher in the 27th minute after a heavy fall following a collision on Uruguay's attacking corner kick. He was replaced by Cristian Olivera.

Fourteen minutes later, U.S. forward Folarin Balogun exited due to an injury after colliding with Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet.

Berhalter brought on attacking options Josh Sargent and Malik Tillman late as the U.S. chased an equalizer, but the Americans finished with only three shots on goal and were not quick enough to get the ball off their feet inside the 18.

Berhalter referenced expected goals on multiple occasions on Monday to support his claim that the USMNT did enough at Copa América to create chances. Per Opta, the Americans created 0.58 expected goals to Uruguay's 1.4.

"I think that, again, when you're in tournament football, there's very little that separates success from failure," Berhalter said. "And it's one action. It's one decision from the referee and you could be in trouble.

"And for us, it's having that understanding. This understanding that every time we step on the field, it has an impact. And I think we're getting there, but we're not always there. And that's something that we can improve."

Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.