The United States Men’s National Team will be back in action on Wednesday night, but this time it’ll be the U-23 squad opening up the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The United States will take on France, who are arguably the favorites to bring home a gold medal at home. With the senior team only a couple of weeks removed from a disappointing and disastrous exit from Copa America that led to the dismissal of Gregg Berhalter, it’ll be interesting to see how Marko Mitrovic and his team respond in the second major tournament of the summer.
It is also worth noting that the United States will be participating in the Olympics for the first time in nearly two decades, as the men’s team last made an appearance in 2008. With all eyes on the United States following an early exit over the summer at home, it’ll be important for Mitrovic to show that the future is brighter than ever with a top-three finish and a medal in Paris. In my opinion, getting out of the group is the absolute minimum for this group, and getting a bronze medal at the very least should be the goal.
The Who, When, and Where
As previously mentioned, this United States team will kick off their Olympic campaign with France on Wednesday night. Following their opening group stage game against the host, they will be in action once again three days later, on July 27th, against New Zealand. Finally, the USA will round out their group stage games with a contest against Guinea on July 30th.
France has already been touted as a legit gold medal-contesting team, led by former world-class striker Thierry Henry, and there is not much else you can say about the U-23 Les Bleus that hasn’t been or won’t be echoed around the world over the next couple of weeks. But more importantly, the United States cannot afford to look past this New Zealand team that is coming off a quarterfinal appearance in the 2020 Olympics.
This game, rather than the opening game against France, could be what makes or breaks their podium dreams in Paris. New Zealand was only a few penalty kicks away from knocking out the 2020 hosts, Japan, in Tokyo and reaching the semifinals for the first time in their history. Which means they will be hungry to repeat the feat, and grabbing a win over the USA would be a massive step in the right direction for them.
In their third and final group stage game, the USA will take on Guinea, and if results fall as expected, with a loss or draw against France and a win against New Zealand, the US will likely need to grab at least a point, if not three, from this third game to move into the knockout stages of the competition.
Meet the Players
Head Coach Marko Mitrovic brings a young but hungry group of players to Paris, but with roster restrictions tight already, some key players were left at home. Young, exciting players like Diego Luna were left out for older, more experienced guys like Djordje Mihailovic. The other two overage players in the group include former senior team stalwarts Walker Zimmerman (Nashville) and Miles Robinson (Cincinnati), who are expected to anchor the backline. In between the sticks are Gaga Slonina (Chelsea) and Patrick Schulte of Columbus.
Alongside Walker and Miles will be the newest Chelsea loanee, Caleb Wiley, who made the jump from Atlanta United for $10 million. John Tolkin of the New York Red Bulls and Nathan Harriel of the Philadelphia Union round out the defensive-minded part of the squad. In the midfield will be the previously mentioned Mihailovic, along with Jack McGlynn (Philadelphia Union), Benjamin Cremaschi (Inter Miami), Max Dietz (Greuther Furth), and the Venezia duo of Tanner Tessmann and Gianluca Busio.
The real question I have for Marko and the staff is the lack of true forwards on the roster. The frontline is made up mostly of wing players, who show a lot of potential but have to prove that they can put the ball in the back of the net at a consistent rate. The frontline of the team is made up of Kevin Paredes (Wolfsburg), Griffin Yow (Westerlo), Taylor Booth (Utrecht), Paxten Aarronson (Utrecht), and the lone forward and Major League Soccer player in this area of the field, Duncan McGuire, who plays for Orlando City.
With McGuire being the only player who has played significantly in the forward role, it’ll be interesting or terrifying to see how Marko makes adjustments if needed throughout the tournament. This could be an area that comes back to haunt them when it matters the most, and with arguably the most creative player in the realistic player pool, Luna, sitting at home, the US could find themselves in trouble due to their mistakes.
X-Factors
I think it goes without saying that the most important players in this tournament are the Serie A duo of Tanner Tessmann and Gianluca Busio. But then again, you may share a different opinion on the matter, but for me, Tessmann has to show that he is capable of playing at a high level after reportedly rejecting a move to Italian giant Inter Milan.
The X-factors in this tournament will be guys like Wiley, Booth, and Schulte, aka guys who already have or will be on the verge of a big European move at some point in the near future. Schulte has quickly established himself as one of the best shot stoppers in the MLS. With the senior team GK competition likely to be wide open in the new era, he will have an opportunity to throw his name into the hat with a great performance in Paris.
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