USMNT on World Cup doorstep: "We just have to keep dreaming” | OneFootball

By Charles Boehm

IRVINE, Calif. – His talents on the pitch are well known at this point. But Tim Weah has a penchant for timely prose as well.

The US men’s national team winger was downright poetic as he spoke to gathered media about the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in front of his squad, just two short days before the Yanks’ long-awaited 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign opens in Los Angeles against Paraguay on Friday (9 pm ET | FOX, Telemundo, Peacock).

“Being on home soil, number one, is a dream come true,” Weah told a crowd of reporters at the USMNT’s base camp at Orange County Great Park. “I think when you're part of something so beautiful, and then it being at home, is an amazing feeling. It's a blessing.

“Obviously there's going to be pressure because you're the host, and your fans want to see you shine, and I think that only makes it even more beautiful. I think in the end, if we can do the job that we want to do, we make history. So, I think we just have to keep dreaming, keep living in the moment, and we'll see what happens.”

Go time

This occasion has been years in the making for the USMNT. And it’s prompted what’s felt like years of debating: about the program’s preparation for the occasion, the capacity of this collective of players to seize the moment, and most recently, whether controversy beyond the stadiums might distract from those rich possibilities on the pitch.

Now it’s finally time to play the games, and the vibes are duly rising.

“As a group, we just have to stay positive and feed the media, feed the internet with positivity,” said Weah.

“We have one job, and that's bringing joy to a lot of people, and bringing different cultures, different religions together. I think that's the beauty of football, and as players, we just have to focus on that.”

Richards ready?

Even without the need to qualify, this World Cup cycle has been a roller coaster for the USMNT, with wild swings in results and a coaching change in midstream. Yet fortune seems to be shifting in the co-hosts’ favor as that crucial opening match looms.

Exhibit A: Defensive linchpin Chris Richards has been training normally all week and spoke to the media on Wednesday for the first time since sustaining an ankle injury with Crystal Palace that sparked such panic among USMNT supporters.

While he cautioned that the choice is head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s, not his, Richards left no doubt that he considers himself available and ready to start vs. Paraguay.

“When I first came out with the injury, I was pretty devastated, and I was honestly fearing the worst,” said the FC Dallas academy product, “but I kind of forced myself back on the pitch to prove to myself that it was doable.

“Once I found out the diagnosis, it was, alright, how do I get ready for this game against Paraguay? That's what I've been doing, 24 hours a day, recovery, been doing whatever it takes to be available for the first game. … I knew that I had to do whatever it took to be here.”

Front foot

The importance of a strong start to the tournament cannot be overstated, particularly for a host side eager to grab their nation’s attention and inspire excitement and support. And under FIFA’s newly expanded 48-team format, the milestone of merely advancing from Group D has been eclipsed by the importance of a first-place finish and superior seeding in the knockout stages it provides.

“If you can start off the World Cup with three points, [it’s good] not just for our confidence, but also show the group that we want to be the top dogs in this group, and we want to be top dogs in this World Cup,” said Richards. “So I think with a statement, hopefully, on Friday and three points, I think that'll definitely set the tone for the World Cup.”

The 13 members of the current squad who took part in the Qatar 2022 World Cup will recall how the pressure rose as the Yanks drew their first two matches – a late Gareth Bale equalizer was particularly costly in their opener vs. Wales – and thus entered their group-stage finale in urgent need of a victory over Iran.

Take down Paraguay, and the path to a deep run will open up in front of them that much more quickly.

“We didn't lose the first game last time around, so that's also a positive, but it could have possibly made things harder,” said striker Haji Wright. “So I think we all know with that experience, having lived that experience, that we want to start this tournament fast and show the rest of the group what we're capable of.”