United States midfielder Brenden Aaronson said that players on the men’s national team are determined to make the country proud, following criticism of its performances ahead of the World Cup.
In its final games before coach Mauricio Pochettino names his roster for the World Cup, the USMNT suffered comprehensive defeats to Belgium and Portugal in home friendlies last month.
– U.S. Soccer sporting director quits for Saudi role
– World Cup 2026 kit ranking: Every jersey we’ll see this summer
But Aaronson, who was an unused substitute against Belgium before playing the final 12 minutes against Portugal, insisted that the results were not down to a lack of investment on behalf of the team
“I think it’s tough because I feel like there’s this kind of stigma that people don’t think that we care and stuff like that, but we do care,” Aaronson told ESPN’s Julien Laurens in an interview on Tuesday. “I think we care a lot.
“It’s difficult when we go into games and we lose games like that. I think the Belgium game was a bit hard done by, because I thought we were the better team for most of that game.”
The U.S., which is co-hosting the tournament alongside Canada and Mexico, will kick off its World Cup campaign against Paraguay in Inglewood, California, on June 12. It has two final preparation games, against Senegal on May 31 and versus Germany on June 6.
“I think this camp, I saw everybody was super focused. I saw a great group of guys that want to make the country proud, want to make everybody proud,” Aaronson added. “Now it’s up to us. We have two more games going into the World Cup to do what we can and the coach is giving us all the right things that we can do.
“So I mean, it’s just up to us. It’s up to us to make the final thing and I think everybody’s ready to go for it and ready to give their all.”
As well as Paraguay, the U.S. will take on Australia and Türkiye in the group stage, with the top two teams qualifying automatically for the last 32 alongside the eight best third-placed teams.
Pochettino’s side played all three opponents in friendlies last year, beating Paraguay and Australia but losing to Türkiye.
1:16
Marcotti: Pochettino should want answers about Crocker’s resignation
Gab Marcotti speaks about Matt Crocker’s decision to quit as sporting director of the U.S. Soccer Federation.
“We played Belgium and Portugal last two games — of course we wanted to do better, but I mean, they’re two of the best countries in the world and it’s difficult. I know we could have done better and I think going into the World Cup, we’re going to have three tough group-stage games where they’re very, very good.
“We’re just going to have to be ready for these games and I think we will be. We’ve played against most of these teams and we’re just really ready to give our all and go to the next round and get past the round of 16 and keep doing our thing.”
Before that, though, Aaronson said he is focused on the climax of the season with Leeds United.
The Yorkshire club currently sits 15th in the Premier League, six points clear of the relegation zone with six games remaining and also has an FA Cup semifinal against Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on April 26.
The 25-year-old former Philadelphia Union player said he is eager for a positive end to what he called “definitely my best season in my career so far.”
“I think for us, the biggest thing was the Premier League, staying up and just having a great season, which I think we’ve done and we’ve put ourselves in a great position,” he said. “And then the cherry on top is being the FA Cup and getting to the semifinals.
“And for us, of course we’re focused on game by game, like you like to think as a footballer, but that’s in the back of your head. It’s going to be a massive game for this club and for this team.”
