As a player, the focus is always on the next game. At this point, though, that next game is the World Cup. It is suddenly very, very real.
For Balogun, this Friday is the culmination of a three-and-a-half-year journey. It began with a recruiting visit to Orlando that, ultimately, was made with Friday’s match in mind. After all this time, Balogun is a USMNT regular and, perhaps, a World Cup starter. So what’s it like arriving at that moment?
“I think it’s probably gonna start to feel more real to me when I line up and we get the fans, when we go onto the pitch, shouting and screaming,” Balogun said. “I definitely think it’ll be real to me the closer I get. This is the first opportunity for me to play in the World Cup, so I don’t really have any expectations. I’m just trying to stay present, stay in the moment, and I’m enjoying the experience so far.”
As for Ream, this is his second World Cup. It’s already much different than his first. The buildup has been longer and more intense. More importantly, though, it’s at home, which means even the most senior member of the USMNT squad doesn’t fully know what he’s walking into.
“It’s not our first rodeo, but it’s our first one on home soil, so it kind of is our first rodeo in a way,” he said. “It’s exciting. I’m old enough that I remember bits and pieces of 1994. I’ve tried to tell guys and tried to convey the message in the media that this is a once-in-a-career opportunity, and that with that comes more expectation or more pressure. At the same time, we have to enjoy it. There’s nobody putting more expectation, more pressure, on us than ourselves, and that’s the way that it should be.
“It’s about just opening your eyes and taking everything in, because this is unique, this is different. This is completely different from anything that any of us as players have experienced, so take it in, enjoy it, and embrace everything that it is, because it’s so unique. It’s so special.”
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