The United States team defeated Mexico 2-0 in the final of the Concacaf Nations League after receiving a curious form of motivation from Gregg Berhalter, USA coach.
The United States coach showed a photo of Michael Jordan as inspiration and as someone who did not lose finals and who achieved a three-peat, similar to what the USA achieved in the Nations League.
“That is our approach, I showed Michael Jordan when he has three fingers up with the trophy and that’s what we wanted. We put the Nations League trophy in that photograph of Michael Jordan. That was our approach. Not much happens in international sports in North America. Congratulations to the players, congratulations for making a very good, fabulous ending and we are happy,” Berhalter commented after the final.
For Berhalter, one of the important things is to make the players feel that they want to be part of the team and feel that they can fight for the country in international competitions.
“That kind of thing is too much, it’s part of the player, he has to feel it in his heart, he has to want to be part of the team, fight for his country in an international competition. What we have to do is show them the environment, the group of people, talk to them about the quality of players on our team and they can see it. We want to talk on the field, with the way we play and outside there is a great bond that they are sharing together.”
Gregg Berhalter affirms that the United States grows in high-tension matches
Gregg Berhalter, United States coach, stated this Sunday that his team performs better in high-pressure games such as in the final of the Concacaf Nations League in which they beat Mexico.
“We react well to pressure, in games at this level we have better performances, it is what we are preparing for because tournaments like the Copa América and the World Cup are coming,” said the American coach.
“We wanted the trophy, we wanted to celebrate with those three fingers up. I congratulate my players because they played a great game “In this final, we leave happy, especially for the fans.”
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