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00:08Presented by Nikolak Paving Stones, only Nikolak offers 28 vibrant color blends
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00:19Joining me right now, U.S. men's national team legend, still very much one of the faces of U.S.
00:26soccer, does an unbelievable job at Fox Sports soccer analyst, my guy, Alexi Lalas.
00:33Alexi, welcome to Shine Time. How are you?
00:36Wow, that was a hell of an introduction. You read it exactly as I wrote it. Thank you very much.
00:41It's great to be here. We live in interesting times, both on and off the soccer field,
00:44and we are knee-deep in this World Cup, so bring it on.
00:49Without question. And listen, I value your expertise on everything when it comes to the World Cup
00:55and soccer, and watching last Friday Team USA and what they did in the 4-1 World Cup opener.
01:03I called it the most dominant win we've ever seen for U.S. men's national team in history.
01:11What's your take on that?
01:12Yeah, I agree. I think it was, especially if you put, you know, that first half,
01:16I think you can put that in a museum. Best I've ever seen the U.S. play in group stage
01:22at a World Cup.
01:23And it's not that we haven't won before, but it's the way in which this win came about.
01:30I don't want to say ease, because it's not easy what they did,
01:35but the fluidity and the consistency of chances created, obviously the goals scored,
01:43and just the sheer dominance over this Paraguay team.
01:46What's been interesting to see is, you know, sometimes in American soccer,
01:50we have an inferiority complex and an insecurity, and I've seen some people say,
01:54yeah, but, you know, Paraguay didn't play or whatever.
01:56You know, don't do that.
01:58But we made Paraguay look bad by the way that we played.
02:03And so I think it's important.
02:07I think it galvanized.
02:08I think it brought people into the tent.
02:10There's a lot of people that are paying attention to this team,
02:12not just because they won, but how they won and kind of justifying their attention.
02:17But now you've got to build on that, and you can't piss away all the goodwill that you have
02:21and all these people coming into the tent here as they get ready for Australia,
02:24which is going to be obviously a different opponent and a completely different type of scenario.
02:27So you nailed it, and you referenced people coming into the tent.
02:31So I'm curious, what were your original expectations for this Team USA?
02:37What are your expectations now?
02:41They haven't changed.
02:42Actually, I only am more bullish about this team.
02:46I didn't think it was going to be as dominant against Paraguay, but I expected them to win.
02:50And as we get through this month, hopefully, from a U.S. perspective and from a Fox perspective in the
02:58broadcasting,
02:59what I hope is that Americans, they don't settle anymore for their men's team.
03:04This is a team that should win the group, get out of the group, should win the round of 32.
03:09Now we're back to the old round of 16 where you need a little bit of help.
03:13But again, nothing better than a World Cup except for one thing, and that's a home World Cup.
03:16So you grab some of that magic, and now you're into some rarefied air.
03:20But I expect this team to win the group, and I expected it before, and I now certainly expect it
03:26after the first game.
03:27But, you know, the pendulum sometimes can shift and change, so that this game in Seattle this Friday is going
03:34to be huge.
03:35And you win that, you're through.
03:37But I want them to win the group and give themselves the best chance as they get into the knockout
03:42rounds.
03:42Absolutely. Now, before we even preview, I want to continue to review,
03:46because I couldn't get enough of that win and how it ultimately happened.
03:50In terms of a gorgeous, majestic goal for the ages, I mean, Gio Renner's goal at the end,
03:56I mean, that was as powerful and as potent.
04:00And, you know, one of those goals where you say, wow, that was a thing of absolute beauty.
04:05How do you describe what we all witnessed?
04:08I mean, it was an exclamation point to what was already going to be a beautiful night
04:12and a wonderfully successful night.
04:14And, you know, sometimes there are layers.
04:16So a goal isn't just a goal.
04:18It's about, you know, who scores it and what's happened before.
04:21And that's, in the moment that you're watching it, you don't know all that.
04:25But, again, this is Gio Reyna, who, you know, had all sorts of drama last World Cup,
04:31has not been playing well with his club team,
04:34didn't even know he was necessarily going to be on this team.
04:37And I think he justified the selection in that moment because of the beauty of the goal.
04:42But who did it?
04:42And I think it really kind of showed Mauricio Pochettino, who's the head coach of this team,
04:47how he has, you know, kind of bought into the old Herb Brooks type of philosophy of,
04:52it's not the best players, it's the best collection of players.
04:56You nailed it.
04:57Absolutely nailed it.
04:58Now, you look at who's up next.
05:01You reference it.
05:03Australia, Australia beat Turkey 2-0.
05:06Now, from the outside, I'm not on the inside like you are.
05:10That surprised me.
05:12Did that surprise you?
05:14It did.
05:14I think a lot of people actually were looking at Turkey A as better than the U.S.
05:19I don't, but they are still a very good team.
05:22And don't get me wrong, the U.S. could have lost to all three of these teams.
05:25They could screw this up, and they could still screw this up.
05:27I think that this was a warning shot, that this Australia team is very, very good at absorbing pressure and
05:34countering.
05:34And I think they're going to do the same thing against the U.S.
05:36U.S., as we've seen, though, is also very good at finding those moments to break teams down.
05:41But, you know, as we're talking right now, we just got off of watching Spain versus Cape Verde.
05:46And in soccer, as we know, you can bend and not break, and you can get results, and you frustrate
05:52the opponent.
05:53I think there's going to be some frustration that Australia is looking to put upon this U.S. team,
05:57as this U.S. team has a lot of possession and tries to break down Australia.
06:02And they just got to find a way through.
06:04But Australia will have watched the U.S. performance.
06:07And the U.S., by the way, will have watched that Australian performance, a 2-0 smash and grab, if
06:13you will.
06:14Well, they didn't have possession, they didn't create a lot of opportunities, but they created two goals.
06:19And they were really, really good on the counter.
06:21And the U.S. has to be very wary of the Australian team doing the exact same thing with some
06:25of the speed that they have.
06:26So break that down, if you can, for us, right?
06:28The smash and grab, right?
06:30The counterattack, as you reference it.
06:32Do you think, in your opinion, for Australia, that would work against the United States?
06:37And how would the United States combat that, if the strategy is the same?
06:42Yeah, so when you have a team that is, you know, defending for most of the game,
06:48again, we just saw Cape Verde do it against arguably the best team in the world in Spain.
06:53You're defending a very small goal.
06:56And so in the numbers, you're basically just surrounding.
06:59And you are absorbing pressure.
07:01And you clear balls.
07:02You block shots.
07:04Well, this applies to other sports, too.
07:05But certainly in soccer, it's very difficult at times to break down because there are so many players in a
07:11very defined area, a small area.
07:14And so the United States is going to need players like a Christian Pulisic, who's very good in small spaces,
07:19to get around, to draw players, to draw fouls.
07:23Set pieces, I think, are going to be important.
07:25By the way, Australia is very good on set pieces, and they will also look on the other side.
07:29So they've got to find a way.
07:32And sometimes it's mind-numbing, and sometimes it's just a grind.
07:35I'm not saying that this game on Friday is necessarily going to be beautiful.
07:39If the U.S. scores one, I think they score three.
07:41But you've got to get that one.
07:43And that's easier said than done against an Australian team that's smart, I think, that will defend as a group
07:48collectively and try to frustrate the U.S.
07:52Prelisic's health, how vital is that when it comes to the United States getting another win?
07:57Yeah, I mean, he's huge.
07:59He, like I said, he draws a crowd, which opens up space for the Balogans and the others out there
08:04to do what they need to do.
08:07You know, there's an element of inspiration, and other teams have to game plan for him.
08:13And oftentimes that means double-teaming him.
08:15And so it's not that this team can't play and play well without him.
08:19And it is interesting that Christian Pulisic did not score the other night.
08:23It's actually, I think, a good thing, even though he played very, very well for the time that he was
08:27on the field.
08:28But he didn't score.
08:29And I think that that, you know, that sends a message, not just externally, but I guess more internally to
08:35everybody.
08:35It's, you know, we want him.
08:38We don't necessarily always need him to be the goal scorer.
08:41But you certainly need him out there with all the attention that he gets and the ability.
08:45I mean, even a bunch of those goals, beating multiple players on the dribble.
08:49And once you've done that, once you've broken that type of pressure, that's where the good stuff happens.
08:53How much does winning the group matter versus getting to the knockout round?
08:57I remember years ago when we were in the World Cup in 94, I remember our coach was adamant.
09:03Bora Militinovic, legendary coach, was adamant about you need to have a pathway.
09:08And he referenced great teams you need to have and you need to, if you can, secure the easiest route.
09:17Easy is not a great word, but there are other harder routes.
09:20So when you finish first in your group, you are going to play a third-place finisher.
09:25And I'm not saying that they can't lose to them, but it's better than playing a first-place finisher.
09:30And so in that round of 32, you want whatever that pathway is to the promised land, you don't want
09:37to have obstacles unnecessarily put in your way.
09:41And so finishing first in the group, I think, is huge specifically for this tournament and specifically for this U
09:47.S. team.
09:48Alexi, quarterfinal or bust for Team USA, is that fair?
09:52I think that's fair.
09:54You know, the question I get most is what does success look like, even after this first game?
09:59Like I said, you know, I have a practical answer and a romantic answer.
10:03My practical one is, I told you, you win the group, you win that round of 32, and then, you
10:08know, you count on some of that magic from a home World Cup in the round of 16,
10:13where we kind of always been, now we're kind of into rarefied air, you get to the quarterfinal.
10:18And then, you know, you're probably playing a team that's better than you.
10:21Not probably, you are playing a team that is better than you.
10:24And so you would need the soccer gods to really smile upon you to get any further with that.
10:30My romantic answer is, you know, like obscenity with the Supreme Court.
10:35I know it when I see it, right?
10:36You'll feel it.
10:37It'll course through your veins.
10:39You will look down there and say, I am proud about what I saw.
10:43Those young men made me proud about hosting the World Cup, about my team, and ultimately about my country.
10:48And I don't know how that manifests in terms of the scoreline and where it is.
10:53But when that final whistle blows, like I said, hopefully, if they've done their job and they've captured hearts and
11:00minds out there,
11:02America is proud, and that memory will live long.
11:05Get into the weeds, if you can, from a Team USA perspective.
11:09I asked you about Australia and perhaps their strategy.
11:12If you're Team USA, what's the strategy for Friday?
11:16And give us a prediction on how you ultimately think this match is going to go.
11:21So I think that this, you know, week will have been spent referencing the good that happened and not throwing
11:27the baby out of the bathroom right there.
11:29Yeah, yeah.
11:30Because there's a lot of good with the understanding that Australia is going to game plan for the U.S.
11:35And even the way that life works, you might go to the well and it might be empty.
11:41And you say, well, it was full the other day against Paraguay.
11:43Well, it's a very different game.
11:44And so you have to have alternatives.
11:46And I think Pochettino, like any coach, will say, you know what?
11:50This isn't like your you-know-what doesn't stink.
11:53It certainly can.
11:55And so if you think you're going to rest on your laurels, you will find yourself on the opposite end
12:00of the spectrum.
12:00And that's what I think that this team needs to avoid.
12:03I'm not saying, again, that they have to replicate what happened against Paraguay other than hopefully a win.
12:10But this momentum, momentum in any sport, in a tournament situation is so key.
12:15And so if you can generate that momentum going forward, it's going to serve you well.
12:21I don't think there's going to be a lot of changes when it comes to the personnel for the XI.
12:26You know, you mentioned Christian Pulisic.
12:28I think he's going to start.
12:29We haven't heard anything different.
12:30But it is concerning if he's not.
12:32But there is plenty of depth.
12:33We saw the other day when Mauricio Pochettino went to his bench, including, as you referenced, Reyna coming in.
12:40There's a lot of different possibilities out there and some depth and some really strong candidates to come in if
12:46and when they need him.
12:47Or if and when Pochettino needs him for anybody going forward.
12:51But I don't think they're going to change a whole lot.
12:53And I think they will be looking forward much more so than looking back.
12:58Who wins the World Cup and why?
13:02I mean, your safe bet, notwithstanding what just happened with Spain, they're going to be fine.
13:07It's Spain and France at the top.
13:08I would put Argentina in there.
13:11But nobody's repeated since 58 and 62 with Brazil.
13:15So history is not on their side, even with Messi and everything in his new backyard.
13:19Right underneath that, you've got your Portugal's.
13:21And it pains me to say this.
13:24England's, you know, you're going to have dark horses.
13:26You know, we'll see some more teams here in the next few days and see what they look like.
13:30But I'd say France, I think it's, again, your safe money, the depth.
13:34I mean, they could bring three teams to this tournament and not miss a beat.
13:37So I think that the sheer depth that they have, I think that, you know, leads to a Spain World
13:45Cup.
13:46All right.
13:46Last one for you.
13:47You're a U.S. legend.
13:48Obviously, in addition to your majestic play, we think about your amazing hair.
13:53A lot of chatter about another U.S. legend turned broadcaster's hair.
13:57And listen, I respect anyone who has great hair on the air.
14:00What do you think of Landon Donovan and his new do?
14:03I love it.
14:04I love that he's been so kind of honest and open about talking about what he's doing here.
14:11I told him before, I said, look, man, if it makes you happy, do it.
14:14Well, actually, I told him, just shave it off.
14:16You're a good-looking guy.
14:20I'm totally 100% with it.
14:22I'm so happy for him that he has done what makes him happy.
14:27And I like that he is kind of, you know, embracing, you know, the inevitable types of jokes that are
14:34going to happen.
14:36Own it, baby.
14:37And I think he's doing that.
14:38And I think it says a lot about him as a person that he is doing it.
14:43But for me, Landon Donovan, with or without hair, I still love him.
14:47And I still admire and respect the way he goes about his business, whether it was on the field, whether
14:53it was in front of the camera, or it's just in private.
14:56Alexi, unbelievable stuff.
14:58Keep up the great work on Fox.
14:59We're enjoying all the World Cup coverage.
15:01And we'll do it again real soon.
15:03Let's do it, baby.
15:04All right.
15:04Australia.
15:07Awesome.
15:08Thank you so much, man.
15:09This was great.
15:10You're welcome.
15:11Thanks.
15:11We'll see you later on in the tournament.
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