Canada coach Jesse Marsch has taken a swipe at Donald Trump and claimed the President’s intervention on a red card during the World Cup ‘is why everyone hates America.’
USMNT star striker Folarin Balogun’s suspension for a red card was lifted after Trump spoke to FIFA leadership, allowing him to play against Belgium in the round of 16.
Balogun was the top scorer for the Americans with three goals when he was shown the red card in a 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina in the round of 32.
FIFA controversially lifted the suspension, allowing Balogun to play in the round of 16, an extraordinary move that triggered praise from Trump and outrage from Belgium and around the world.
It appeared to be the first time since 1962 that a red card during a World Cup didn´t result in a suspension.
And Marsch, who is American but coaches the Canadian national team, has said on the eve of the game between the two nations that the incident would never have happened in another country.
Jesse Marsch says Donald Trump’s World Cup intervention ‘is why everyone hates America’
Folarin Balogun was controversially sent off in the USMNT’s Round-of-32 win over Bosnia
However, Balogun’s suspension for a red card was lifted after Trump spoke to FIFA leadership
‘Well, this is a deep conversation. We, as Americans, have been inundated with propaganda since we were young. We’re the No 1 country in the world, we deserve everything, we dominate everything, No 1 in every aspect of life. This is what we’ve been told.,’ Marsch said during an interview with The Guardian.
‘So, when things happen and we don’t feel like we’re in control of it … we feel like we deserve to be treated differently because we’re Americans. That is one of the things that infuriates the rest of the world about Americans. And Americans don’t know that if they don’t ever leave the country.
‘So what I feel when the Balogun ruling happens is that would never happen in any other country in the world, and this is why everyone around the world hates America.
‘That was proven to be so. The US had had a good World Cup, was doing well. All that switched in one moment. But do I think that that’s about corruption and unfairness? The problem is, football is inundated with this kind of stuff.’
Belgium eventually beat the USMNT 4-1 to reach the quarterfinals and Balogun had little impact in the humbling loss for the Americans on home soil.
Balogun, who hasn’t played for his French club Monaco this season after a possible transfer to Premier League team Everton fell through, is not on the current USMNT roster. Pochettino cited a leg injury.
The Argentine coach admitted last week he should have been more involved in the decision to appeal the red card given to star forward Balogun during the World Cup.
‘At the time, I didn´t fully understand the criticism,’ Pochettino said. ‘But now, with the benefit of time and looking back on it, the truth is that you have to learn from things, from mistakes. And I think sometimes the things that happen during a tournament have to stay there.’
