Berhalter "happier" after the friendly defeat at the USMNT than the final defeat at the Gold Cup

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – It was another defeat against Mexico, the most unbalanced score of the rivalry since the 2009 Gold Cup final defeat at the old Giants Stadium.

A 3-0 defeat at the 70th all-time meet between the US men's national team and its toughest foe at MetLife Stadium on Friday night could be a bitter pill for fans. For coach Gregg Berhalter, this is a more positive result than the Gold Cup final two months ago, also won by Mexico 1-0.

"From my point of view, and you're going to think I'm crazy, I'm happier with this game than the Gold Cup final," said Berhalter. "Because in the Gold Cup final, I felt as if all we were doing was playing the ball long. And that was our only solution. And now, at least we have tried to play the way we envision. "

Berhalter said he could live with the mistakes made in the back because his team was "brave with the ball".

The tactical plan, he said, was to have midfielders Weston McKennie, Alfredo Morales and Wil Trapp play more deeply, connect them in the background and then open pockets in their pockets. Christian Pulisic and Tyler Boyd could exploit.

But Mexico responded by sending his wingmen to the American central backs and his back to the American back. As before, faced with this pressure, as was the case during the Gold Cup final, the USMNT was long.

Tonight they continued to search for solutions.

"For me, this is a great example for guys to keep working, to keep moving forward, to continue to progress," said Berhalter. "Today, I saw guys who at least wanted to keep trying to keep playing."

Aaron Long said that there had been a discussion in the locker room at halftime on the question of whether to play more directly, but the decision was made to stick to it. to the way Berhalter wanted them to play.

"It's hard at times, but that's how we grow, that's how we're going to learn," said Long. "That's the game plan. We do not just want to abandon the ship because it does not work. We must find solutions. There are many things we could have done better to get out. We will watch this movie and we will come out of it. "

Most fans are unlikely to expect it, but Zack Steffen paraphrased the line invented by the Philadelphia 76ers.

"It's a process," said Steffen. "We have our team goals, our style goals, we want to play. And we just have to continue. These things will happen, it will make us stronger. We will not give up. It's a process.