The contrast is stark.
As Jesse Marsch, an American manager who has coached at the top levels in England, Germany and Austria, gets set to lead Canada to the 2024 Copa America semifinal, the United States Menās Soccer Team is completely uncertain about its own directionź¦ŗ.
Marsch, in his first major tournament with Canada after the team hired him as its head cš¤”oach in May, has helped guide somewhat of a Cinderella-esque run in the Copa America ā Canadaās first-evš¦©er campaign in the tournament.
Theyāre set to ą¼take on Argentina ā FIFAās top-ranked team in the world and the defending World Cup champions ā in the semifinal Tuesday š¹night at MetLife Stadium.
āIām at a point in my life where I donāt need all the other bullsāt,ā Marsch said after Canadaās practice at MetLife Stadium onź§ Monday. āI want to do things I want to do. I want to get back to loving the game that I love, and š¬this team has helped me find that, and Iām very thankful for that.ā
After ź¦ Gregg Berhalterās contract expired as the USMNTās manager in December 2022, Marsch interviewed for the vacant head-coaching job before the team eventually ended up bringing Berhalter back on a new contract.
Marsch, this past May, blasted the UāSMNT and the United States Soccer Federation for his experience iš¦n their interview process, saying, āI wasnāt treated very well.ā
And Berhalterās future with the USMNT already hangs in the balance again after the team disastrously failed to advance past thį¦e group staź¦ges at the Copa America ā becoming the first host nation to be eliminated in the group stages in tournament history.
The USSF is evaluating Berhalterās future and will make a decision by midweek, according to multiple reports.
Meanwhile, Marsch, 50, has the USMNTās neighbors up north playing some of the best soccer theyāve ever played and has certainly seemed to move on from his USMNT disaš·ppointment.
ź¦¬While the nation that spurned him finds itself in disarray, Marsch has Canada where the USMNT believes it belongs itself.
š¦āI never doubted my ability as a coach,ā Marsch said. āWhat Iāve always doubted in thšis business is, how do you find the right people to work with? The best thing about where Iām at right now is that it feels like home to me. It feels like Iām working with a group of players that value the things that I bring. I value the things theyāre about.
āI think the Canadian Soccer Association is a humble but professional organization and the new leadership is fantastic. The people in the country have been 100 perą·“cent behind me and us and what weāre doing with this team. ā¦ Itās the reason I came, because I felt how sātrongly they wanted me here.ā
Canada lost to Argentina before beating Peru and drawing Chile in the group stages, scoring just onše šÆgoal between the three games.
They finished second in Group A, and subsequently beat Venezuela in penalties last Friday to book their spot in the semifinal.
šItāll be a rematch of Canadaās Copa America opener, when they fell 2-0 to Lionel Messi and Argeš®ntina.
āWe didnāt do well enough with Messi last match,ā Marsch said. āHe was able to run freāe aš t our goalkeeper too much. We wonāt man-mark him, but heās certainly an emphasis of how we will defend.ā
Though heās a Racine, Wis. native, Marsch has a lot of history in New Jersey, where Tuesdayās clashā will take placeź§ .
He rose to prominence over three years in charge of the Red Bulls in MLS, š²and before thš³at was an assistant at Princeton ā where he played collegiately.
After the Red Bulls, Marsch became an assistant manager at RB Leipzig in Germany, managed Red Bull Salzburg in Austria for two years, returned to RB Leipzig as š¦©manager for a year and then managed Leeds in England for a year before being fired āin February 2023.
āTo coach in the Copa America Final here in New Jeršsey, where I went to university, where I coached the New York Red Bulls, where a lot of my mentors and people that have had a big effect on me personally and professionally, to see them this week, to know theyāre gonna be at the match, to be here at this historic site, is special,ā Marsch said.
āMy mindā is wrapped totally around giving our team a cāhance. Not just to have a special experience, but a real special victory.ā