What a weekend. I’m back after an absolutely electric night in Atlanta. No, sadly I don’t mean the U.S.-Belgium game. More on that harrowing experience below. I am referring to the night before. A joy-filled show with Big Boi, the life-affirming Renee Montgomery, Clint Dempsey and more at a packed Eastern. I found the whole experience to be incredibly moving and uplifting. The celebration of a town filled with the kind of love the world needs right now. You can watch the show here. 🍑

ii. Up next, we’re heading to TAMPA BAY on April 17 for Men in Blazers Live from Tampa Bay, presented by Verizon. Joined by a cast of luminous guests, we'll revel in the magic of the Premier League, shoulder to shoulder with this city’s vibrant footballing faithful. Get your tickets now. 🌴

iii. ICYMI amongst all the international football this weekend, this is simply one of the wildest sequences of play you will ever see. The USL never disappoints. 🤯

Speaking of the USL, please enjoy this absolute ROCKET from way, way outside, courtesy of the Tampa Bay Rowdies. 🚀

And how about a non-league, last-minute winner to wrap things up. Just look at the limbs of the Rochdale faithful. 🙌

iv. Programming reminder: I will go live with Clint immediately after tomorrow’s USMNT clash with Portugal in what we can only hope is an improved performance from Saturday. Join us here. And then I will recap all of tomorrow’s glorious European and intercontinental playoff finals action in detail with Rory Smith on Wednesday. You will not want to miss it. 📺

To better days ahead,
ROG

P.S. - Some much needed joy from the weekend, courtesy of the one and only Jürgen Klopp. ❤️

I don't remember a U.S. Men’s game that was harder to watch in a long, long time. And I wish I was just referring to the absurd chaos caused by both teams wearing white jerseys, which gave the whole 90 minutes a JV feeling. 

A highly-anticipated game that began with Mauricio Pochettino’s bold talk of “Why not us?” and “We plan to be in the semi-final” ended with the profound fear of “We are gonna get grouped.” Finally the U.S. played before a decent crowd against a decent team – one shorn of some of its best players – and they simply tore us apart by upping their intensity. The U.S. could match that only with the same eerie naiveté which saw us dumped out of the World Cup by the Netherlands in 2022. The second half was a wilt bordering on capitulation. GFOP @alexdowner quipped on our Instagram, “I’m sure the semi-finals will be easier.” 

We go again Tuesday night (7 p.m. ET, HBO Max/TNT/Peacock) against a Ronaldo-less Portugal. Here are five questions we must now wait until then to answer:

1. We used to be a proud nation of goalkeepers. How do we have no clear No. 1? 

Pochettino has favored Matt Freese for the past year. Matt Turner has had a torrid experience since the 2022 World Cup. He had not started for the U.S. since leaking four against Switzerland 13 games ago, and appeared to have plunged so far down the depth chart as to not be worthy of a call-up. Bringing him back this late and giving him the start will undermine Freese’s confidence in a Liam Rosenior-esque fashion. Gent needs as much big game experience as possible. While Turner’s goal was battered and his defense did him few favors, he played with such a skittishness, he was far from convincing. Who is the next Matt up?

2. How do we empower first-half-of-the-season Christian Pulisic and not the AC Milan 2026 version? 

Simply put: We will not win a game where the compliments handed to CP after the final whistle are of how well he tackled in his own half. Belgium handled Christian with ease, and when he did have a clear sight of goal, his shooting was wild and uncalibrated. There was a lot of talk ahead of this game about the pressure on his shoulders and whether he can handle it. I think the real question should be whether he can play for the U.S. without an evident sense of frustration – both with himself and his teammates. Christian plays well when he is loved and trusted. Can we find a way to set him up to cohere in a way in which he is a key part, but not the everything?

Put another way: In attack, we played with an unforged chemistry, as a team of individuals with little cohesion, organization or structure. Where are the combinations? Going forward, which players appeared to mind-meld? Flo Balogun is a monster for his club at the highest levels. How does he barely touch the ball in our system?

3. Why are we defending like the New York Jets? 

Success at the international level depends on a single fundamental: A robust backline. We appear so vulnerable and flimsy, the Belgian game plan was to shoot on sight. Look at the Belgian goals again. A collective cataclysm of shots allowed from way downtown, blocks not made, or defenders turned far, far too easily. 

This is hard to write. I adore Tim Ream. He is a heroic, valiant, tenacious human being who soared at the 2022 World Cup, which appeared to be a remarkable cap to his international career. That, at 38-years old, he is an automatic starter for this U.S. team creates a profound challenge that has to be acknowledged and discussed. Poch relies upon Tim for his leadership and experience in a squad bereft of it. But Tim’s strengths are his voice, and his passing in possession. As a defender at close quarters, his lack of pace, and the marginal edge of slowing reflexes an invitation for a half-decent team to go at him. We missed Chris Richards terribly on Saturday night, but his absence cannot be used to mask the critical questions that need to be asked. 

4. How much does Poch really trust “his guys”?

I am old enough to remember when the USMNT was on a five-game unbeaten streak! It needs to be repeated that Poch picked up a U.S. program which had stalled out under the ill-fated second coming of Gregg Berhalter. The Argentinian struggled initially, but found traction by responding to the Gold Cup absence of many of his star names by lifting up several MLS newcomers in Sebastian Berhalter, Patrick Agyemang, Max Arfsten, Alex Freeman and Matt Freese. They powered the optics of an upturn of form last summer. The second half of the Belgium game, in which so many of these players entered the fray and were exposed, led to the collapse. Poch must now quickly decide how much he really believes in them in the real world of football outside of the distorting mirror of CONCACAF.

5. This is all on Pochettino’s shoulders now

When Pochettino was hired, U.S. Soccer briefed that he was in this project for the long haul. The reality is Poch’s constant talk about how much he misses the English Premier League has made it clear: his tenure will be remembered as an incredible success or a dismal failure based on his ability to get out of the group, and win two games in the knockout phases. We American fans only have two moods: “We are gonna win it all, give us the trophy now” or “We are a dumpster fire, what a joke of an organization.” If Poch gets us to the quarterfinals, we will be ecstatic. If not…

The agony of Saturday was that a crowd of 66,000 showed up ready to dream, only to witness a nightmare. A reminder, that if the U.S. Men crap the bed at this World Cup with the nation watching, the repercussions for U.S. Soccer’s brand will be generational. But if they soar, they will catch the wave of the surge in football fandom which is happening with or without them. 

Sixth-in-the-world Portugal now await Tuesday night, albeit without Ronaldo and as a side who looked blunt and flaccid during a 0-0 draw Saturday night at the Azteca. History will determine if the Belgian beatdown was a wake-up call. There can be no complacency. There is no need for us to play naive attacking football. Can we summon a defensive steel and score in moments? Can we realize results are all that matter as there are no style points in football? Can we stop agonizing over whether our players are “world class” or not? They are good enough to come together as a collective and fight in the way they need to, to make us proud, and the greatest opportunity to do that in our lifetime is 73 days away. -ROG

By Tommy Stewart & Jacob Schneider

Igor Tudor’s 44-day nightmare at Tottenham Hotspur came to an unceremonious end yesterday, and the only shocking thing about the “mutual” parting was that it felt about 43 days overdue. Based on Spurs fans and players’ tepid response to his uninspired appointment, the fourth-shortest managerial reign in Premier League history was like a racing car that couldn’t start because it had no wheels or engine.

Charged with securing Premier League safety, Tudor won only once in seven games, a Champions League dead rubber against Atlético Madrid. The first leg of that tie, where second-choice goalkeeper Antonín Kinský was thrown under the bus and humiliated by his manager, was the lowest low-point of Tudor’s time at Tottenham. Roberto De Zerbi has emerged as the favorite to take the poisoned chalice, which would make him the club’s fourth manager in less than a year, and the injured Dejan Kulusevski has only played for one of them.

Europe’s Big Boys Are Marching into the World Cup 💪

European champs Spain are favorites to win this summer, and they reminded the world that even in friendlies they don’t mess around, beating Serbia 3-0 on Friday with three different goal-scorers. Florian Wirtz destroyed Switzerland for Germany, scoring two stunners and assisting twice in a 4-3 win that left Julian Nagelsmann worrying about the fragility of his defense. An experimental England XI bored a Wembley, who booed the returning Ben White, so of course the Arsenal defender had to go and score in his first international appearance in four years. The Netherlands edged a tight 2-1 win against Norway with goals from Virgil van Dijk and Tijjani Reijnders, proving Liverpool and Manchester can work in unison, while Scotland lost 1-0 at home to Japan and France's B-squad punished Colombia's A-squad 3-1 in what should be a warning shot to the rest of the football world.

More: Kylian Mbappé shows that the most important part of enjoying a match from the bench is good snacks.

CAF’s World Cup Success Should Be No Surprise 🌍

Thanks to a 2022 semifinal World Cup run from Morocco, all eyes are on the Confederation of African Football’s representatives this summer, and the start of this March window is only fueling that narrative. Three of their heavyweight sides had sensational starts this weekend, as Les Éléphants of Ivory Coast dominated South Korea 3-0, with Son Heung-min’s side being shut out in staggering fashion. Senegal, who paraded their AFCON trophy before the match, handily defeated Peru 2-0 with Chelsea loanee Nicolas Jackson scoring, and then Morocco drew Ecuador 1-1. Expect much more from all three come June.

The Host Nations’ Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day 🫠

The USMNT’s second-half performance in their 5-2 loss to Belgium was more disappointing than waking up and thinking it’s a Friday, then realizing it’s Thursday. However, they weren’t the only host nation to begin the window on rocky shores, rather, they were one of three that looked… rough. Les Rouges of Canada drew an Iceland side that missed out on this summer’s action, 2-2, while Villarreal man Tajon Buchanan was sent off with a straight red card late - and now misses out on their second fixture of the window. Mexico, meanwhile, drew a Ronaldo-less Portugal 0-0, but couldn’t generate anything in the final third with just one shot on target and 33% of the ball. All three nations will need a big result Tuesday to have any shot at claiming any positivity from this window.

No speed limit. Get yours now.

Bosnia and Herzegovina 🇧🇦 vs. Italy 🇮🇹 (Tuesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, FS1)

Genaro Gattuso’s Italy will be relieved to escape the emotional burden that comes with playing at home in this mammoth match, and they’re also evidently glad to be facing Bosnia and Herzegovina rather than Wales. That will only fuel the fire of the Dragons, who are still heavily dependent on footballing Peter Pan, Fiorentina’s 40-year-old Edin Džeko, who kept his side alive against the Welsh last week. Newcastle maestro Sandro Tonali said his goal against Northern Ireland was the “most important of [his] career so far,” but it’ll count for nothing if Italy don’t reach a first World Cup in 12 years.

Czech Republic 🇨🇿 vs. Denmark 🇩🇰 (Tuesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, FS2)

Denmark will endure a hostile visit to Prague’s cozy Letná Stadium to face a Czech Republic side who rode their luck by beating the Irish on penalties last week. They’ve not been to a World Cup since 2006 while De Rød-Hvide are looking to reach a third on the spin, something they’ll feel confident of having beaten North Macedonia 4-0 last week. This tight face-off could depend on whose frontman decides to take the stage: Denmark’s Rasmus Højlund or the Czechs’ Patrik Schick. Højlund’s a new man in Naples, but with 25 goals in just 51 caps, Bayer Leverkusen’s Schick is his country’s fourth highest scorer of all time and a potent threat.

Kosovo 🇽🇰 vs. Türkiye 🇹🇷 (Tuesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, FOX Soccer Plus)

Kosovo shocked the footballing world with their 4-3 win over Slovakia to clinch a berth in this playoff final, while Türkiye were mightily tested by Romania, but came out on top 1-0 courtesy of a truly sublime assist from Real Madrid starlet Arda Güler. Now, the two European nations will meet in this playoff final, with the winner clinching a spot in Group D this summer alongside the United States. Can Güler and promising Juventus forward Kenan Yıldız book their ticket to North America to compete in the tournament for the first time since 2002, or will Kosovo put on the glass slipper once more and break through?

Sweden 🇸🇪 vs. Poland 🇵🇱 (Tuesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, FOX Sports/Fubo/VIX)

Sweden manager Graham Potter will likely show up to this one with a fresh fade and some proper menswear, if history has anything to say. On the pitch, though, it’s a clash between noted Bane enthusiast Viktor Gyökeres up top for the Swedes and modern football’s Tom Brady in Robert Lewandowski. More importantly, it’s a rematch of the 2022 UEFA playoff final that saw Poland deny the Swedes a spot in the Qatar tournament. Not only is a berth in this summer’s event on the line once again, but it’s a chance at redemption for Potter’s squad, and an opportunity to establish dominance for the Poles.

England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 vs. Japan 🇯🇵 (Tuesday, 2:45 p.m. ET, VIX)

Thomas Tuchel’s XL 35-man squad gives him a first and final glimpse at returning England regulars Harry Maguire and Kobbie Mainoo, who can thank Michael Carrick’s magic for their recall. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Dominic Solanke, James Garner and Friday’s surprise goalscorer Ben White also have late auditions, but Trent Alexander-Arnold can probably press pause on his Three Lions career as long as the German is in charge. Hajime Moriyasu’s Japan were the first team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup and this is an apt acid test on where they’re at before the Big One.

This week’s question: Kylian Mbappé needs one more goal to become France’s joint all-time top scorer. Who currently owns that title?

Email us with your answer for a chance to win a much-coveted MiB patch!

Last week’s winner: Congratulations to last week’s winner, Derick Kurdy, who was the first to correctly answer that Cardiff’s Millenium Stadium replaced Wembley for the EFL Cup finals between 2001-2007. Your patch is in the post, Derick.

👋 We’ll see you again on Wednesday. In the meantime, keep sending your stories, questions, and USMNT thoughts to [email protected].

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