"Hosting a World Cup on home soil, it comes with its pressures. There's pressure. I feel it. Yes, like, it's there. But it's nothing that I can't handle."
"We decided to bring this type of opponent in because we wanted to play against the good teams, teams that can show our reality."
"A win or three over a team of Belgium or Portugal's quality will be necessary for the U.S. to make a deep run in the knockout stage of the tournament."
The U.S. men's national soccer team is under pressure as the FIFA World Cup approaches. Players like Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic acknowledge the weight of hosting the tournament. Upcoming friendlies against Belgium and Portugal will test the team's readiness against top competition. Optimism is rising after an unbeaten streak, including victories over Japan, Australia, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino emphasizes the importance of facing strong opponents to gauge the team's reality and prepare for a successful World Cup run.
Read at www.npr.org
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