It had been 67 years since the last time Canada conquered the U.S. men's national team on the road -- until Saturday.
Canada upset the U.S. 2-1 at Children Mercy's Park in Kansas, a game that was played in front of about just a half-full venue.
Led by American head coach Jesse Marsch, Canada brought the energy and intensity early on, scoring both of its goals on U.S. mistakes in build-up play.
Though the U.S. did pull one back, for most of the game it played sluggishly with a lack of care. Canada picked up its second ever victory over its Concacaf rivals on U.S. soil. After the game, interim head coach Mikey Varas, a Gregg Berhalter assistant, said it came down to the USMNT's missing mentality.
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"The mentality is on the players. They know it," Varas told reporters. "We speak the truth to each other. I love those guys. But they know that mentality to fight, to run and to sacrifice, I can't do that for them. That's on them."
Varas added he did not understand why the mentality wasn't present.
"I'm not a psychologist, so I don't know," he said. "I felt that the trainings were intense. They were aggressive. But when the game comes, you gotta get going. And the players are the ones that bring that. Coaches can only get you so far from a mentality perspective."
Soccer
U.S. players Chris Richards and Luca de la Torre, the goalscorer, also both mentioned a lack of mentality and intensity in their postgame interviews.
While the U.S. women's national team is clicking on all cylinders under new manager Emma Hayes, the men's side has been the complete opposite for quite some time.
Top English Premier League head coach Mauricio Pochettino is the heavily rumored candidate who will take over the men's managerial role, but it's been almost a month since reports first emerged of his hiring. The USMNT has not yet officially announced a new head coach since Berhalter's firing.
Even if Pochettino does eventually take over, he has less than two years and no major international tournaments (excluding the Gold Cup) to prep the USMNT to succeed at the 2026 World Cup that will be held on home soil.
The biggest aspect Pochettino, an Argentine, has to change is to get the players to fight for the badge, which in this case is their country. The clock is ticking.
