USMNT: Final Gold Cup roster released but mistrust from fans remains

On Thursday, Gregg Berhalter released his final USMNT Gold Cup roster, but one player’s omission shows there is still mistrust in the fan base.

Following an embarrassing and abysmal 1-0 loss to Jamaica in Washington DC, the U.S. Men’s National Team released its final Gold Cup roster on Thursday morning. Missing from that list is 19-year-old Werder Bremen forward Josh Sargent.

Sargent, who was eligible to play in the U20 World Cup, started and played 90 minutes in Wednesday night’s friendly. Despite such a poor team performance, Sargent was far from being the worst player on the pitch. Yet, instead of seeing what he can do on the world stage in his proper age class, either he or the team staff decided he was better off trying his hand in the Gold Cup.

It can now be assumed that instead of playing in the Gold Cup, which kicks off in just nine days, Sargent will join the U23s for Olympic qualifying. To many, that seems like a waste of a summer.

Gregg Berhalter hadn’t done much wrong before Wednesday night, but his decision to go with four central midfielders led to a poor performance from the U.S. and a toothless attack. ‘We performed poorly tonight,’ said Berhalter. Jeff Carlisle of ESPN reported that Berhalter noted the pressure of the roster announcement got to some players.

Most USMNT fans will now point to another frustrating mistake from Berhalter: leaving Sargent off the final Gold Cup roster.

People are very upset that Sargent was excluded from the Gold Cup roster. And they have every right to be, given the U.S. Men’s track record in the last 18 months. At the end of the day, though, people are upset because they don’t trust the men’s side of the USSF yet, not after that 2-1 result in Couva in 2017.

Most people actually expected Sargent to play with the U20s in Poland, so seeing his name on the provisional 40-man roster was somewhat surprising. With his name on the provisional roster, it was then assumed he’d have a role in the Gold Cup. However, USSF general manager Earnie Stewart had a plan in place when having Sargent with the senior team and not the U20s.

Stewart and his staff decided Sargent was proven with the U20s, which makes sense in its own way.

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The U.S. wanted Sargent to get a chance with the senior team in camp and a chance in some actual game action, even if it meant not playing in the Gold Cup. They also wanted other young players, like Sebastian Soto, to get their chance with the U20s.

The notion that Sargent was already proven with the U20s was clearly lost in translation. The fans who are not willing to look harder highlight something bigger than just a roster selection for a summer tournament. It highlights how damaging the U.S.’s failed World Cup qualification was. Fans are not willing to let that go just yet and Berhalter is still working to regain both fans’ trust and interest.

Fans want young and fresh blood in the national team, and Berhalter is willing to do that to an extent. He is trying his best to balance young players and experienced players. That’s why Michael Bradley is still on the roster and why Tyler Adams is constantly included. Sargent just isn’t quite ready, even as he continues to build his confidence and gain experience.

Yet, until the USMNT can prove it can be successful, fans will continue to mistrust Berhalter and Stewart’s decisions. Their choice to exclude Sargent from the final Gold Cup roster just means the team must win this tournament if they want to start regaining fans’ trust or risk further alienating their fans.