By Braden Chalker
The US men's national team will soon take the pitch on June 23 against Bolivia to kick-off their Copa America 2024 journey.
As soon as the whistle blows vs Bolivia at AT&T Stadium, the Stars and Stripes will be fully focused on making a statement in Group C to access passage to the quarter-finals. Not only will head coach Gregg Berhalter be under pressure, but the players will, too, as they will want to start off on the right foot with a convincing victory in late June.
Many expect the USMNT to qualify in their group that contains the previously mentioned Bolivia, CONCACAF foes Panama and Uruguay. However, there are still a few reasons as to the the US need to make a statement in this summer's Copa America...
The USMNT are playing on home soil
One of the main reasons as to why the Copa America is all-important for the US is due to the fact that they're the hosts for the tournament. A terrible group stage showing could see them kicked from the competition before the quarter-finals on their home turf, which would be an embarrassment to say the least.
It's hard to imagine a scenario where that happens -- even when you think about the team's shortcomings against Trinidad and Tobago in November of 2017 -- but the hosts will want to put on a good show for USA and opposing teams' fans alike.
Berhalter has one of the most talented USMNT rosters ever
Berhalter's time with the USMNT has certainly been a roller coaster with plenty of ups-and-downs. The team has looked a little better at times during his second stint and he has no excuses to not do well with the same core of players he took to the 2022 World Cup.
Should the USMNT come up short in the quarter-finals -- let alone the group stage -- don't be surprised to see rumors surfacing once more about Berhalter potentially being on the hook. It wouldn't be totally out of this world to see the likes of Jose Mourinho or Pep Guardiola be interested in managing a national team with the the talent that US has.
The US need to have a deep run in a major tournament
The US just about finished in second place at the 2022 World Cup behind runners-up England, but that might not be enough to qualify this time around -- nor should the Stars and Stripes come away from Group C play with anything less than two wins and maybe a draw.
Berhalter's team didn't just come up short in the Round of 16 vs the Netherlands -- they were pretty flat for most of the contest. While the Netherlands are still one of the best soccer countries, the US didn't even test them until it was too late.
The likes of Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie will have to step up and propel their team to the last four of the competition -- depending on how the group stage plays out -- to further etch their names into USMNT history with this talented squad of players.
This article was originally published on 90min.com as Why the USMNT must show up at Copa America 2024.
