By News18
St Louis (USA), Jul 3 (AP) Mauricio Pochettino got a feel for what the U.S. men鈥檚 national team still faces at times during home games: a crowd rooting for the opposition.
鈥淚t was like to play in Guatemala,鈥 the coach said after his team got two early goals from Diego Luna and hung on for a 2-1 win Wednesday night that advanced the Americans to the CONCACAF Gold Cup final. 鈥淭hat was good for our players because it was an atmosphere that we didn鈥檛 expect.鈥 The U.S. will play Mexico or Honduras on Sunday in Houston, the Americans鈥 last competitive match before next year鈥檚 World Cup.
A sellout crowd of 22,423 at Energizer Park energized Los Chapines, who outshot the U.S. 20-12 and got an 80th-minute goal from Olger Escobar.
鈥淭hat is football,鈥 Pochettino said. 鈥淲hen we say the connection in between the fans and the team, that is the connection that we鈥檇 like to see in the World Cup. That connection that makes you fly, because (of) the energy that translates.鈥 U.S. players are used to some home matches where the support is overwhelmingly for the opponent.
鈥淲e鈥檙e a country full of immigrants, so it was kind of expected for tonight,鈥 defender Chris Richards said. 鈥淚t was good for some of the younger guys to kind of experience that tonight, but for us experienced guys, we went through World Cup qualifiers with the exact same stuff, so I think that was a good lesson that the team needed to learn.鈥 An Argentine who played for his nation 20 times, Pochettino comes from a culture where soccer dominates life.
鈥淚 saw player of the Guatemala crying,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat is the way that we need to feel, and our fans need to feel the same. It鈥檚 not to come here and to enjoy f the spectacle and if you lose, nothing happens. Yes, it happens a lot. Things happen because you play for your pride, you play for many, many things that I think I cannot tell you tonight. But I think it鈥檚 good for our players 鈥. I came from Argentina and in Argentina it鈥檚 not the same win or lose. The consequences are massive.鈥 鈥淭he rest of the opponents and the different countries,鈥 he added, 鈥測ou play for survival, you play for food, you play for pride, you play for many things. It鈥檚 not to go and enjoy and go home and laugh and that鈥檚 it.鈥 Luna has showed the hunger Pochettino wants. The 21-year-old impressed the coach when he continued playing with a broken nose during a January friendly against Costa Rica in which the Americans used a B team after training sessions with mostly Major League Soccer players that some fans nicknamed Camp Cupcake. He鈥檚 become a regular in the Gold Cup and has three goals in his last two games.
鈥淒iego was the example from January, how he is desperate to play for this shirt, for the national team and that is why now he is in the level that he showed,鈥 Pochettino said.
Striker Patrick Agyemang also has emerged from January camp to gain a starting berth at the Gold Cup, where many regulars are absent.
Sometimes you say it鈥檚 useless, people say it鈥檚 useless,鈥 Pochettino said of the January camp. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not useless. I think it鈥檚 important, important for the national team, important for the team and very important for the country.鈥 Luna scored in the fourth and 15th minutes, the first with his left foot and the second with his right.
鈥淚 loved it. It was awesome, man,鈥 he said of the environment. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what every game should be like and I think that the Guatemalans should be very proud of the fan base that they have and the energy they bring.鈥 Defender Tim Ream, who captained the U.S. in his hometown, said positive results will grow the fanbase.
鈥淣one of it鈥檚 going to happen unless we win, unless we continue to win,鈥 he said. 鈥淔or us, what鈥檚 the hallmark of a U.S. team? It鈥檚 fighting and togetherness. That鈥檚 what we鈥檙e finding and doing in this tournament. And it鈥檚 not always going to be perfect. It鈥檚 not going to always be pretty, but doing that fosters that connection with the fans, with the diehards, with the casuals, with everybody. And as long as we continue to do that, then that culture grows, the feelings grow, and the connections grow.鈥 (AP) DDV