The United States Male Male Male team and the New York FC goalkeeper Matt Freese felt devastated after the 2-1 defeat against Mexico during the Gold Cup final, before insisting that the team will only use the result as motivation during the preparations for the 2026 World Cup.
“I was devastated. It was a massive opportunity for the group and an opportunity to make a statement,” Freese told ESPN. “And maybe we made some statements along the way, but again, the ultimate goal was to win the final and win the trophy, and we failed.
“This is something that I know that we all want that we had another blow and I hope that we have another hit at one point. But it also adds fuel to fire and that makes you hungry.”
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The USMNT emerged in first place in the group phase after defeating Saudi Arabia, Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti, before triumphing over Costa Rica and Guatemala to reach the coveted final against Mexico. Although the United States has obtained the first lead in the fourth minute with a Chris Richards objective, the team finally fell to their Concacaf rival due to the efforts of Raúl Jiménez And Edson Álvarez.
The USMNT entered the tournament on a sequence of four consecutive defeats and with criticism from the fans on an inexperienced team missing several senior players due to the fatigue, injuries and commitments of the club World Cup.
But Freeese maintained that each player considered the competition as a chance to impress the head coach Mauricio Pocsettino.
“Many of us considered him an opportunity, an opportunity to get a few minutes to show the coaches staff what we can do,” said Freese. “But to be honest, for the most part, we really focused on ourselves, focused on the group we had in the locker rooms and in hotels.
“We didn’t really pay too much attention to the outside noise that was going on, especially at the start of the tournament.”
Freeese started with the goal for the six games of the Gold Cup, replacing the longtime goalkeeper of the USMNT Matt Turner In the starting program. The 26-year-old has entered the tournament with a single appearance for the United States, making his debut for the team’s senior days on June 2 in a friendly match against Turkey.
Now, leading to the 2026 World Cup, Freese said that Pochettino said he had to maintain a coherent level in order to compete for this starting role next summer.
“Obviously, I spoke with (coaches staff) and they said it was a big step for me,” said Freeese. “I obviously had an opportunity and I wanted to make the most of it and make them proud and be myself in there.
“They thought it was a big step, but they also said that it was now the minimum standard for me and I need to continue relying on this foundation that I established this summer.”
Freese, who spent his entire career in MLS after spending the ranks of Philadelphia Union, also stressed that the action of the regular season MLS prepares players for the requests of a tournament due to the trip and the congestioned calendar, giving teams only a few days to plan.
“There is always the question of the MLS compared to the other leagues, but I think it is really important to mention that the MLS is definitely a very competitive league with quality players,” he said. “Obviously, you play a difficult schedule, traveling throughout the country and two, three games a week.
“You have periods when he makes three games in six days. You are traveling thousands of kilometers through this. So these types of challenges really help you prepare for a short tournament where there are a lot of games and a limited number of days and a lot of trips.”
Freese has 62 MLS games for NYCFC, managing 17 clean sheets on two and a half seasons.
