00:00What happens on Monday night, Michelle, Belgium, Team USA, how do you think this, and without their superstar, how do
00:07you think this plays out?
00:09Yeah, this is a huge game.
00:12I mean, round of 16, look, the best United States team ever was with Bruce Arena, 2002, Landon Donovan, Demarcus
00:21Beasley.
00:22That team in 2002, Japan and Korea, I was there, they reached the quarterfinals.
00:27And that's the best that a U.S. team has ever done.
00:30So this team, in my opinion, and a lot of people's opinion, this team is good enough to match that.
00:36This team is absolutely, and should, I would say this team, I would say if this team loses Monday night,
00:43it's a disappointment.
00:44Even though they advanced and they got to this round, I think they are, this team is showing that it
00:50is capable of going at least one step further, and it would be a disappointment.
00:56Losing Balogun is a big loss.
00:57He is the leading scorer of the team.
01:00He's the leading scorer of the team.
01:03They're going to have to find someone to step up.
01:06But I think one of the things about this team, unlike Argentina, unlike England, they have not really been relying
01:14on a particular star.
01:17Like, going in, everyone thought, Christian Pulisic, Christian Pulisic.
01:20You know, it's all about Christian Pulisic.
01:21He, they have shown that they can play with him.
01:24They can play without him.
01:26The team has really gelled and become a team.
01:30And, you know, Mauricio Pochettino deserves a lot of credit for that because this team, they were kind of like
01:37very good individual players, I feel, playing in Europe in their various leagues.
01:43But they were not really a team.
01:46They didn't really feel like a team.
01:48And now they absolutely feel like a team.
01:51They really, you can just see the way they're interacting with each other, the way they're, you know, supporting each
01:56other.
01:56And going down a man for that many minutes, as they did the other day, and pulling out that win,
02:02that showed an incredible amount of resilience and incredible around the teamwork and hard work and skill, too.
02:10And I think this team is, you know, it's the best U.S. team that I've seen.
02:16And I think that they are at least equal to the 2002 U.S. team and maybe better.
02:22So, I think they have to win against Belgium.
02:26But it won't be easy.
02:27Belgium has a lot of good players.
02:29It will not be easy.
02:31So, did you think the red card was warranted?
02:35Bruce Arena has come out and said that he believes the red card was warranted.
02:39It was an injury and he could have hurt him by the rules.
02:43What was your takeaway on that red card?
02:47I love Bruce Arena.
02:49I still keep up with him.
02:51You know, I have great respect for him.
02:53But I would disagree with him on this particular one.
02:56I don't think that that was a red card because there was no intent to injure.
03:01I mean, yes, the way their legs tangled, the way he stepped onto that ankle, it created a dangerous situation
03:09for that player's ankle.
03:11But the player was behind him.
03:14It's not even like he was looking at.
03:16He wasn't even next to him or in front of him, the player he stepped on where you could say,
03:21oh, there's a guy in front of him.
03:23And he stepped on his foot.
03:25They tangled up.
03:26They're going for the ball.
03:27And when you see it in fast motion, not in slow motion, you can really see that it was in
03:36the action of the game.
03:37It was in a live action of a play where two guys are going for a ball.
03:42And the way their feet tangle, you know, Balligan's leg is like behind him, literally behind him, stepping on this
03:52guy's ankle.
03:53And, yes, in slow motion, you're sitting there going, ow, that hurts.
03:57This is a dirty play.
03:58He's going to get injured.
03:59But I didn't see any intent.
04:02I did not see any intent.
04:04I think it was two guys going for a ball.
04:05It was an unfortunate accident.
04:09And, you know, Balligan has been asked about it, and he said that he thinks a yellow card would have
04:14been warranted.
04:15He said, I can see giving me a yellow card, but not a red.
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