AFPWHAT HAPPENED
Despite the excitement over the USMNT's dramatic penalty shootout victory over Costa Rica on Sunday night, FOX Sports analyst Alexi Lalas urged fans not to read too much into the result - or assume it means Mauricio Pochettino's side is now a favorite to win the Gold Cup.
“I was disappointed in the first half," Lalas said on his State of the Union podcast. "I thought that there was a response after halftime. So whatever Pochettino said - because he didn't change anybody - but whatever he said, they came out with a little bit more urgency... this was a feel-good moment ultimately for this team."
But that feel-good moment needs to come with perspective, he said.
“I think it's completely fair and right for us, given all of the craziness that we've seen with this team both on and off the field, to kind of have this moment, celebrate this moment," he said. "They did what they needed. So sing while you're winning, but don't break your arm patting yourself on the back for beating this average Costa Rica team in the fashion that they did, and going to yet another semifinal - which has been done time and time again by the United States.”
WHAT ALEXI LALAS SAID
Opposite of the USMNT's result, tournament co-favorite Canada lost to Guatemala 1-1 (5-6 on penalties) in the quarterfinals. Lalas said that Canada coach Jesse Marsch created the hype around his team, so he can’t complain now.
“But this is all about the failure of Jesse Marsch and Co. to live up to all the talk," he said. "It's all fine and well until you drop something like this and don't live up to the hype - a lot of the hype that you are creating yourself. And when you do that, you create as many people that watch to see you potentially fail as watch to see you succeed. And you know, the hate-watching that goes on all of that.
“I'm not saying people hate Jesse Marsch, but the personality and the character that he has created here in this tournament - and something that we have certainly played up - lends itself to people coming in and saying, 'All right, let's see what you got.' And then when you fail, if you're Jesse Marsch or anybody else, don't be surprised when people say na na, na na, which is what a lot of people are saying right now."
Lalas also said that there could be consequences relative to Canada's outlook for the 2026 World Cup.
“This is not good for Jesse Marsch,” Lalas said. "If they could seen what happened here and this abject failure of Canada - I'm talking about the Canadian soccer federation - would they say, ‘Hey, this is not going in the right direction and we need to do everything we possibly can to make sure that we qualify.’
“Now, they don't have to do that because they're already qualified. I don't think that they are going to change. But this is not what anybody had predicted and this is not what Jesse Marsch envisioned for this particular Canadian team."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
With the 2026 World Cup just one year away and the United States serving as co-hosts, every competitive match takes on additional significance in evaluating the team's readiness.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The USMNT advanced to the Gold Cup semifinals where they will face Guatemala on Wednesday in St Louis.