“Yes,” he replied without hesitation.
Many others in the country will have a different opinion about his continued leadership of the national team.
The United States lost the first round of the Copa America on Monday after losing 1-0 to Uruguay following a controversial goal by Mathías Olivera in the second half.
Uruguay completed a clean sweep of victories to emerge first in Group C, scoring nine goals and conceding one. Second place in the group went to Panama, which did its job by beating Bolivia 3-1.
La Celeste, which is trying to win its 16th Copa América title and its first since 2011, rounded out the ideal with nine points, followed by Panama with six and the United States with three. Bolivia was left at the bottom with empty coffers.
“We saw that in difficult moments we know how to play as a team,” said Olivera, referring to a tough leg procedure.
Uruguay lost striker Maximiliano Araújo in the first half after a violent clash with defender Tim Ream near the US box. He had to be taken off the field on a stretcher, although he was seen moving his arms towards the tunnel.
“They were very good on the counterattack and the truth is that we had to suffer a lot but luckily we were able to hold on,” said Olivera.
Uruguay had not managed to win its three matches in the group stage of the continental tournament since 1935. And that was in the quadrangular for the title, beating Peru, Chile and Argentina.
In the quarter-finals, Uruguay will travel to Las Vegas to face the second runner-up in Group D, which is still to be decided between Colombia, Brazil or Costa Rica. Panama’s next destination will be the Arizona desert, where it will face the first-place team in that group.
“I’m happy to have qualified and that the team can adapt to everything,” said Uruguayan defender Ronald Araújo. “Whoever comes, we are prepared and we will go out to win the match we are given.”
La Celeste was without coach Marcelo Bielsa, suspended for the team’s delay in starting the second half in two of its first matches. Diego Reyes and Pablo Quiroga were in charge on the bench on a humid night in Kansas City.
“We faced an opponent that was in great need and came out to try to win the game from the start,” said Quiroga. “We settled in and things went well for us at times. Overall, the team didn’t lose its style.”
Uruguay took the lead in the 66th minute when Nicolas De La Cruz took a free kick. U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner turned in a header from Ronald Araújo, who had jumped past Ream. The rebound landed at Olivera’s feet, who simply pushed the ball in with his left foot.
Olivera appeared to be offside with the first header but the goal was confirmed by the VAR.
The U.S. elimination is sure to fuel calls for Berhalter’s firing ahead of the 2026 World Cup, which the country will co-host with Mexico and Canada.
“We will have to analyze everything that happened in the tournament and see where we fell short,” Berhalter said. “It’s obvious that the game against Panama took its toll on us. All of us collectively, the coaching staff, the players, the sports management, we have to analyze how to improve. We know that we have a talented team, one with great potential, but we were unable to show it.”
With a roster made up entirely of players who play for European clubs, Berhalter and the United States were hoping for a strong campaign after losing to the Netherlands in the round of 16 of the 2022 World Cup. Instead, the hosts could only defeat Bolivia 2-0 in their opener and then lost 2-1 to Panama to end up with a tough time.
“We started well and had a lot of intensity, but we lacked a little more quality,” admitted American captain Christian Pulisic. “I feel like we gave it our all, but we just couldn’t score.”
Three minutes after Uruguay’s goal, the United States had a chance to qualify when Bruno Miranda equalized for Bolivia against Panama in the game that was being played simultaneously in Orlando, Florida. But Panama fought back to pocket the three points.
“This is still a young team with a lot of potential. But potential is worthless if you go out there and don’t deliver,” said defender Antonee Robinson. “We all need to raise our game, including myself.”
Berhalter re-signed as coach in June 2023, agreeing to a contract through the next World Cup. But despite a lineup featuring Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, the United States was unable to emulate what it did in its last Copa America, when it lost to Argentina in the semifinals in 2016.
During the second half on Monday, the home fans began chanting: “Gregg out!”
Source: AP
