Online Reporter
US coach Mauricio Pochettino said he was disappointed and frustrated by the backlash over Folarin Balogun’s ban but insisted it was no excuse for his side’s World Cup exit at the hands of Belgium on Monday.
Striker Balogun was cleared by FIFA to play in the co-hosts’ pivotal round-of-16 clash despite having earned a red card in the previous game, following a call by US President Donald Trump to soccer’s global governing body.
FIFA said the decision was not influenced by Trump, but the ensuing row dominated the final days of the US World Cup campaign, with Pochettino obliged to defend Balogun’s eligibility for a game that ended with a crushing 4-1 loss in Seattle.
“I am so frustrated and so disappointed with the people who are supposed to understand this situation,” said Pochettino, accusing critics of “mixing” politics with FIFA’s decision.
“I think it didn’t affect our performance… it’s not an excuse, and we cannot put excuses, it wasn’t our day.
“But in a personal way… (what) is the point? To insult or to receive a lot of bad message or threats, if my position is ‘I am the head coach, it’s a rule… that the player can be available’?”
“My position was to train the team, and if you have available Balogun, because the disciplinary (committee) of FIFA allowed to for you to have the player, it’s not a problem,” said Pochettino.
“In a personal way I feel so disappointed with too many people.”
Balogun, the top US scorer of the tournament with three goals, started the game against Belgium but was not able to make a significant mark.
The US looked a shadow of the team that had made a bright start to the tournament on home soil, inflaming the hopes of the American public for a deep run into the World Cup.
“It was a very bad day. It wasn’t our day, in a collective and individual way,” said Pochettino.
“And we need to accept that sometimes this type of thing happens, but in a tournament like a World Cup, when that happens, you have not another chance.”
Meanwhile, Belgium captain Youri Tielemans revealed his team had been fired up by the uproar surrounding Folarin Balogun.
Tielemans said Belgium’s players had held a team meeting after Balogun’s shock FIFA reprieve and had vowed to make a statement against the World Cup co-hosts.
“Let’s be honest: we held a meeting when we heard the news,” Tielemans said of the Balogun controversy.
“We told ourselves we needed to do our talking on the pitch. That’s what we did today. I’m very proud of the team,” the Aston Villa midfielder told Belgium’s RTBF broadcaster.
Balogun was named in the United States line-up on Monday after FIFA suspended his one-match ban for a sending off in the last 32, but he made little impact in the match.
The shock FIFA decision came after an intervention by US President Donald Trump in a decision which drew condemnation across the football world.
Tielemans’ teammates echoed their captain’s words.
“There was a sense of injustice within the squad, and we were determined to respond on the field,” said Nicolas Raskin.
Dodi Lukebakio said the Belgian team “didn’t understand really why he was allowed to play, because he got the red card,” but said they had been focused on performing.
“That’s what we did today. So we are very happy, very proud, and what is all around us is not our problem.”
Belgium coach Rudi Garcia had been among the outspoken critics of FIFA’s decision, telling reporters before the game that the ruling seemed like a prank from “April Fool’s Day.”
But he struck a more conciliatory note in his post-game press conference, insisting that extra motivation from the Balogun affair “wasn’t needed or necessary.”
“We told (our players) about what was happening. The group is very mature. We have leaders to help us go through that. I told them that mattered the most was us,” he said -SuperSport.
