SEATTLE – The US men’s national team are fresh off July Fourth celebrations on Puget Sound with friends and family. But it felt like Christmas morning on Sunday.
The squad arrived at the University of Washington’s Husky Soccer Stadium for their morning training session by team bus when they learned – at approximately the same time as the rest of the world – that star striker Folarin Balogun is available to play in Monday’s massive FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash with Belgium (8 pm ET | FOX, Telemundo, Peacock).
Shortly afterwards, FIFA officially announced that Balogun's suspension has been suspended – yes, really – for the VAR-imposed straight red card he received for stepping on the foot of Tarik Muharemović in last week’s 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Round of 32.
“I don't know when Balo found out, if he knew before us and he kept it quiet, but I think a lot of us thought it was AI at first,” defender Chris Richards told reporters with a smile.
“We found out through social media, so it was cool. Again, there's a lot of question marks. But we’re just very, very happy, excited as well.”
Matchday-1 shocker
In the aftermath of the Bosnia win, U.S. Soccer officials made clear that the organization had no means by which to appeal the decision to send off Balogun, with the usual one-match disciplinary suspension expected to rule him out of Monday’s big test against the No. 9-ranked Red Devils, who defeated the Yanks 5-2 in a March friendly in Atlanta.
Yet on Sunday morning, it was revealed that “U.S. Soccer was engaged in the process with FIFA” behind the scenes, in the words of a team spokesperson, before the governing body dropped this matchday-1 bombshell, word of which was originally reported by The Athletic.
“In line with article 27 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, the implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year," read FIFA’s official statement.
"If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement."
Huge boon
Having their first-choice spearhead is a huge boon for the USMNT as they prepare for a Belgium side bristling with elite talent, even if the performances of Rudi Garcia’s side have not always met expectations this summer.
“He's our leading scorer in the tournament. He's a big part of this team, so of course you want a guy like that around,” said star winger Christian Pulisic, referencing Balogun's team-high three goals this World Cup.
“Balo is always available. I feel like when I have the ball, when others have the ball, he's making runs. He's so strong, he's quick, and he does a lot of good things. So for us to play with a guy like that, it just makes it easy.”
While a degree of surprise and mystery surrounds this late-breaking development, the Yanks are gratefully accepting the break in their favor, having felt a sense of injustice about the original decision against Balogun, who handled the situation with remarkable grace and composure throughout.
“If you looked at the foul, it was just – there’s no intent at all, and I felt like there was much worse ones that went on in this tournament,” said Pulisic. “Balo handled it so well … We weren't here to complain or make some point; you have to handle it in a good way, and good things happen to people like that. He was so positive and all for the team.
“It just feels right.”
