The CONCACAF Nations League semifinal between the U.S. men’s national team and Mexico got hairy, but for B.J. Callaghan at least, it’s also the source of plenty of pride.
The USMNT steamrolled a truly hapless El Tri, winning 3-0 in Las Vegas to advance to Sunday’s Nations League final against Canada.
Amid a chaotic atmosphere that saw referee Iván Barton hand out four red cards and nine more yellows, and on a night that saw The Athletic report that Gregg Berhalter will return as the team’s head coach during the game, Callaghan told reporters after the match that he was delighted with what the group delivered
“I couldn’t be more proud of the performance that our guys put in tonight,” stated Callaghan. “The support that we have, in our culture, gives all of us a nice sense of calm and understanding that we go through our processes to prepare each time to play match. And again, I can’t be more proud of the performance that those guys put in today.”
‘Next man up’ key in looking ahead to final
Callaghan fielded several questions about the acrimonious nature of the game, which devolved in the second half and finished with both teams down to nine men. From the interim USMNT manager, it was no real surprise.
“These are rivalry games, these are derby games, things like this happen across across the world,” said Callaghan. “What happened [tonight], it comes from a good place. They care about each other so much in that locker room that they’re standing up for each other. Sometimes, does it have an issue where we take a red card? Yeah, but when you know where it comes from, you can accept it.”
For Callaghan there is something instructional to take away from losing Weston McKennie and Sergiño Dest to red cards, but it’s also an opportunity for the rest of the squad to come through for the group.
“It’s a learning lesson for us. Because now we’re gonna go play in the final [without Dest and McKennie], but it’s also something that we preach: next man up,” explained Callaghan. “I think the game is always at high intensity. High-stakes games, knockout games, you’re gonna see emotions, always. I think there were moments from both teams that we could have handled better.”
The bottom line for Callaghan — who declined to comment at length about the refereeing or to declare his team the new “kings of CONCACAF” — was to stay extremely process-oriented. On that front, in a game where the USMNT created several big chances while holding Mexico to a shocking one shot on goal (and only five total attempts), he had nothing but positive things to say.
“In terms of the feeling, the feeling within the group is that we’re very satisfied with the performance that we put on tonight.”
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