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Morning Espresso, 3.24: USMNT disappointment again, World Cup qualifying updates
Welcome in for another edition of the Morning Espresso from the SDH Network, brought to you by Oglethorpe University, Atlanta's premier undergraduate learning experience and soccer powerhouse.
The USMNT finished fourth in the Concacaf Nations League after losing 2-1 to Canada in the consolation match in Los Angeles on Sunday. The team did not improved their performance from the semifinal loss to Panama and now the Gold Cup is far more important this summer for Mauricio Pochettino and this group. Canada was the better team in this match, which is even more impressive considering that they lost Alphonso Davies to injury early on. Alistair Johnston was outstanding, Jonathan David was excellent throughout, and they took control after a strong USMNT start and played with a chip on their shoulder throughout.
The USMNT did not have that chip on their shoulder and they're in this weird spot where they are good enough to see teams do what Panama did to them on Thursday, sit back deep and soak up pressure and put numbers behind the ball. However, they're not good enough to straight up outplay teams on their level. And yes, Canada is on their level. No idea how they will fare as the underdog against teams that are among the best in the world. They'll see all of these sorts of teams in the World Cup next summer and there's a lot of work to do between now and then.
Plenty more thoughts in the video.
Atlanta United earned a draw on the road in Cincinnati in a gritty performance during the international break. Losing Tristan Muyumba to injury made it even more difficult, as did conceding twice in quick succession in the second half. However, they battled back and created an opportunity that led to an own goal. The 2-2 felt fair, even if Atlanta will feel like they were good enough to win on the day.
Nashville and Chicago have won three in a row in MLS after slow starts in the first couple of matches. Austin won yesterday, even if they were extremely wasteful in front of goal and let San Diego hang around.
New Zealand qualified for the World Cup by defeating New Caledonia 3-0 in the Oceania qualifying final. They're back in the tournament for the first time since 2010. New Caledonia will have one chance to reach their first World Cup via the inter-confederation playoffs next year.
Information is coming out about the U.S. bid for the 2031 Women's World Cup and it could see multiple games being played in multiple Concacaf countries. Great article from Henry Bushnell of Yahoo Sports over the weekend with the latest. Excited to see how everything comes together with the bid.
Plenty more stories from a jam-packed Espresso in the video. Enjoy!
More Espresso on Wednesday on the SDH Network, presented by Oglethorpe University.
Published on 3 months, 1 week ago