Lessons from shellacking through Colombia? American players cite the need to change their mindset

Some 48 hours after the US’s 5-1 defeat by Colombia, centre-back Tim Ream was asked to respond to Coach Gregg Berhalter‘s post-match comment that his team showed “a lack of respect for our opponent, the game of football and what we do.”

“I think what he’s trying to say there is that we played exactly what Colombia does best,” Ream said, “and that’s the transition game and we didn’t do enough to soften that type of play in the last type of game . 30 minutes. I think that’s exactly what he’s referring to when he says that.”

Berhalter mentioned the respect factor twice during his ten-minute press conference.

“Especially late in the game we weren’t moving for each other, we felt like we were going to dribble from the back every time,” he said. “There were several players. You can’t just appoint one player. Again no respect for the game of football and the opponent in that case.

“He is a very good opponent. A very dangerous opponent. Our whole idea was that the spaces should be small. If you make the space big, you have a problem. And you saw that. As soon as we opened, it was lights out.”

Berhalter also defended his central defenders.

“We can’t point out the centre-backs here,” he said. “We really can’t do that. It had nothing to do with the 5-1 result. You can go back and check the targets. It is the midfielders who do not recover. They are guys who lose the ball in positions where our (outside defenders) are high. They were hung to dry several times. …”

Ream’s central partner, Chris Richards, appeared with Ream during the US Soccer media call on Monday. He was asked if he expected the team to change its tactics when it faces Brazil in the final pre-Copa America match on Wednesday.

“I think there will be some kind of change in the game,” he said. “I mean, I’m not a fortune teller, so I can’t really say, but I think we want to try some things out because these friendlies before a big tournament are the time to do that. We can see what works and what doesn’t work.

“I think a few things will have to change, not only structurally, but also the mentality, which Tim talked about. When you play against these types of teams, even if it’s a friendly match, you can kind of tell the spirit and the fight they have. For me, the only thing we need to change is our mentality.”

The US trailed by two goals before the 20th minute and were overwhelmed by Colombia after scoring in the 58th minute. The players seemed well aware that their performance seemed less energetic than Colombia’s. Ream, who was replaced by Cameron Carter-Vickers in the 62nd minute, while the score was still 2-1, they asked about lessons learned.

“I know we talk about these being friendlies and not playing for three points or going through to a knockout stage, but you understand and start to get an idea of ​​what those games are going to be like,” Ream said. ‘And after this week we will play tournaments. Knowing what it means to them, I think it must mean just as much, if not more, to us. And that goes back to the intangibles, the fight and the will to try to achieve a result.”

The Copa America, which the US opens against Bolivia on June 23, is US Soccer’s crucial opportunity to decide whether it has confidence in Berhalter to lead his team at the 2026 World Cup.

“The reason I’m so disappointed is guys just didn’t do their job,” Berhalter said Saturday.

He added: “We certainly take our responsibility as a technical staff. We can’t blame all of this on the players. Our job is to prepare them with a game plan, and then it’s about execution. And I think this game will help us understand that if we don’t do the things we need to do, we get hurt quickly.”

Berhalter also called the loss a wake-up call. Come on Tim Wea agreed.

“I think tonight was one of those nights where you’re like, ‘Damn, we’ve got to step up our game,’” Weah said after the game. “It happens in football. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose. This is how you bounce back. It’s how you deal with adversity. That is what this group stands for. We just have to take that next match into account.”

The winger brilliantly scored the US goal against Colombia, but Weah was deep in the US half when he lost the ball after the dribble of Jorge Carrascalwho scored Colombia’s fourth goal after a give-and-go with Juan Fernando Quintero.

“Nobody wants to lose,” Weah said. “It is clear that we are a group of winners. So it’s a rough night. That’s what friendly matches are for. We see the bigger picture, which is the Copa America. We just have to correct all our negative points and sharpen our positive points.”