Doug McIntyre
football journalist
One by one, members of the U.S. men’s national team marched out, breaking their usual pre-practice routine to hug George Altidore.
Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Tim Ream – they all wanted to recognize USMNT legends. Altidore is the third leading scorer in program history. Only Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan are behind him. Last practice before the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal victory over Jamaica in St. Louis on November 18.
It wasn’t just the players. Pochettino himself walked over and greeted his old friend and rival warmly. “Mauricio hasn’t changed one bit,” Altidore said in an exclusive interview with FOX Sports about the new American coach, whom he faced in the English Premier League when the Argentine coached Tottenham Hotspur and Altidore was a striker for Sunderland. And before that in Spain.
“He’s a really great guy and it was great to come and take a walk down memory lane and talk about the battles we had and the national team.”
Like most USMNT alumni, Altidore is a huge fan of his former team. The next night across the street at City Park, Altidore received another warm welcome in the supporters’ section, where he joined the American Outlaws during the game.
Altidore was the United States’ starting striker at the 2010 World Cup, in which Donovan starred, and the 2014 World Cup, in which Dempsey scored two goals and wore the captain’s armband. So it makes sense that Altidore would be most closely associated with that team. Moreover, in the 2009 edition, they reached the final of the Confederations Cup where Altidore’s winning goal eliminated the mighty Spain in the semi-finals. But he is also the bridge between the USMNT era and this era.
Altidore has played alongside Pulisic, McKennie, Ream and other current national team players, and made his 115th and final U.S. national team appearance in 2019. Had things been a little different, he could have joined them at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Reliable international strikers are the rarest of assets, and like all but the truly elite soccer nations, the United States has never had enough of them. It’s no surprise, then, that then-USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter reached out to Altidore in early 2022 and said he would closely monitor the then-32-year-old’s MLS season with the New England Revolution.
“I didn’t think I was going to be a starter or anything like that. I thought I could offer something different off the bench and be a veteran presence,” said Altidore, who has been limited by fitness issues and has scored just one goal in his first 19 years. said: Appearing with Revs. He went on a six-month loan to Mexico’s Puebla until mid-2022, scoring two goals in six Liga MX games. It wasn’t enough. “We talked, but the results were different,” Altidore said. “It’s disappointing, but that’s life. I respect that decision.”
Nearly three years later, the U.S. still doesn’t have a permanent No. 9 player up front. Folarin Balogun was one of the few prospects in the 2024 Copa America rout, but he is yet to feature for Pochettino due to injury. Ricardo Pepi capitalized on his opportunities in October and November, scoring three goals in three games.
“I really like the hunger that Pepi plays with,” said Altidore. “When you see the guy up there running and pressing, that attitude spreads to the rest of the team. Balogun and (Josh) Sargent do that too. To be clear, Haji Wright played well. I’m a fan of Brandon Vazquez. . “What I’d like to see is someone like Daryl Dyke get healthy because I think he brings something completely different.”
Now 35, Altidore is almost two years younger than Ream. He never officially announced his retirement, but he knew it was over when the Revs bought out his contract last year. “I will never move to play with my family again,” said Altidore, who married tennis star and fellow Floridian Sloan Stevens in 2022. The couple splits their time between Los Angeles and Altidore’s hometown, Boca Raton.
Unlike many of his former U.S. teammates who now work in the media, Altidore has kept a relatively low profile since hanging up his cleats. His new passion is Sogility, a soccer training business that builds indoor stadiums for cold weather. This is why Altidore was in St. Louis. Sogility’s newest space opens later this month near St. Charles, Missouri.
Overall, Altidore likes the direction the USMNT is currently headed. “We have a year and a half left until the next World Cup and I think the players are starting to feel that intensity in a good way,” he said.
One thing he hates? Former national team players taking open shots at the current national team. Last month, USMNT great Tim Howard made waves when he criticized Pulisic for celebrating a goal against Jamaica by imitating a dance popularized by President-elect Donald Trump. Pulisic later told reporters there were no “political” intentions.
“That explanation is unconvincing,” Howard wrote in Britain’s Daily Mail. “You’re either on one side of this or the other. If you’re bold enough to make a public statement, I don’t have a problem with that. But own it.”
“Christian Pulisic is a great person.” Altidore said. “I know he gets a lot of attention for anything. I’m not going to talk about politics, but I’ve known him since he was 17 and I’ve never met a better person to represent the national team. Talk to him. “It’s baseless and ridiculous to share, but I want it to be known that as a human being, he’s one of the best people you could ever meet.”
Pulisic is one of two American players in history to have a better goals-to-game ratio than Altidore. (The other is Dempsey.) Altidore’s career strikeouts are 31 and Altidore’s career strikeouts are 42, so it’s probably only a matter of time before he passes him.
Altidore welcomes it.
“When I see Weston and Christian today, I can’t help but smile and feel proud,” he said. “We were once all over Europe. We know how difficult it is. As Americans, in our hearts, no one wants to be there. They would all love to be home and close to their families. Instead, they miss their vacations over there and live their dreams. I’m working hard to achieve it.
“I always remember that aspect: how lonely it can be,” Altidore said. “It may sound cliché, but it’s important, especially for former players, to know they are supported and loved.”
Based on footage from before training in St. Louis, the love for Altidore is mutual.
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