The summer of soccer remains busy, with major tournaments concluding and the Women`s Euros starting in Switzerland. Adding to a packed week is the U.S. women`s national team`s friendly against Canada. Here`s an update on the latest developments.
Defining Moments for USMNT and USWNT
The U.S. Men`s National Team faces Guatemala in the Concacaf Gold Cup semifinals on Wednesday, a key moment in their active summer schedule. While historical records and odds favor Mauricio Pochettino`s side, this Gold Cup has seen many unexpected results, offering the team a chance to deliver a significant performance in St. Louis.
Their path to the semifinals was challenging, marked by a tense penalty shootout victory against Costa Rica in the quarterfinals on Sunday. This difficult win is seen by many as a crucial, determined victory early in Pochettino`s time as national team coach. Pochettino has tasked a young, relatively inexperienced squad with the goal of securing the USMNT`s first Gold Cup title in four years. Several players are seizing this opportunity to prove their worth; Malik Tillman, soon heading to Bayer Leverkusen, has been particularly impressive. In the quarterfinal, goalkeeper Matt Freese, defender Max Arfsten, and midfielder Diego Luna also had notable contributions.
Heading into the semifinal, the key question for the USMNT is whether they can build on the positive aspects of their recent win to generate real momentum and instill confidence following a year of inconsistent results. A significant focus remains on individual player performances, as everyone aims to secure a place among the team`s regular starters when the full senior squad regroups later this year, with an ultimate eye on the World Cup roster for next year.
Concurrently, in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Women`s National Team is also in a phase of evaluating players during their match against Canada, albeit with different objectives. Coach Emma Hayes views this friendly as the culmination of an extensive effort to assess a broad range of players for the USWNT roster. It offers young talents a final opportunity to make an impression as Hayes focuses on developing team cohesion over the next two years in preparation for the Women`s World Cup.
Hayes will have a wealth of talented players across different positions to consider. A particularly noteworthy area is the competition to potentially become the primary goalkeeper after Alyssa Naeher. Mandy McGlynn and Claudia Dickey both started recent games against Ireland, and Angelina Anderson is also part of the goalkeeper group for this camp.
