Atlanta United goalkeeper Brad Guzan on Friday shared his disappointment with the U.S. men’s national team’s 2-1 loss to Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday, a defeat that combined with two other results knocked the U.S. out of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Guzan was one of three goalkeepers called in by manager Bruce Arena for the two qualifiers, which started with a 4-0 win against Panama in Orlando last week.
Breaking a pattern he had used, Arena chose not to use Guzan in the second game, instead preferring to again select Tim Howard.
Guzan talked about the loss, the impact of not making the World Cup, not playing and who should take over for Arena, who resigned Friday:
Questions and answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.
Q: What are your thoughts on the disappointment of Tuesday’s result?
A: Frustration. Disappointment. Anger. We know as a team we didn't get the job done. We failed. We let a lot of people down in the process.
Q: Did you think you were going to play Tuesday considering the rotations in previous games?
A: Yeah. I mean, we always want to play. we know how big those games were. Whether it was Friday or Tuesday everyone wanted to be on the pitch. Obviously, there's only 11 guys. The manager makes his decisions and we go with it.
At that point, when you find out you aren’t in the starting 11, you aren’t playing, it’s all about how you can help the guys and try to prepare them as best you can.
But I think there’s, regardless of the magnitude of the game, as a professional you always want to be on the pitch. You always want to be playing.
Q: Correct me if I’m wrong on this, but I think part of the reason you came back to MLS and Atlanta United was playing time and preparation ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Is that correct?
A: That's not the only reason. There were some other reasons going on. My situation at the time when I decided to come back, my situation in England wasn't great. I wasn't playing. I surely wasn't playing consistently.
For me, it was about like I said earlier, you want to play every game. You want to play. You want to be in an environment where you are wanted and where you can contribute both on and off the field.
Q: I’m sure you already knew or heard about this already, but Bruce Arena did resign as U.S. manager earlier today.
A: There's been a lot of talk about a complete overhaul, a complete change, this and that. I don't make this decisions, clearly. We need someone that's going to obviously understand what our region is about and how to bring our team, in terms of progress with younger players, in terms of players that understand the magnitude of certain games and ultimately makes us a better team as a footballing team and a team that can go in these conditions, in these environments, understand how to get results.
Q: You plan to pursue your national team career. Simply because the World Cup is out of the question, you aren’t retiring from international play, right?
A: No. Every time you get called up to the national team it's an honor, it's a privilege. You never take that for granted. I've never taken that for granted. You understand what it means to represent your country at the highest level.
For me, going forward, if my name and number is called, I’ll continue to go help the team in whatever way I can. Whether that’s playing or what’s not.
We have a massive challenge to get better as individuals, to get better as a team and make sure we never repeat this.
Q: What’s the next first step to put the team in the best possible position to qualify for Qatar in 2022?
A: First and foremost, you need to name a manager. It's a massive disappointment. Like I said: frustration, anger. We let a lot of people down.
Q: Who do you think should be the next manager? I’m sure you’ve thought about it.
A: Don't know. That's not for me to decide. As a player, as somebody that's been fortunate to get called into a few camps and play a few games for my national team, you go in with an idea that for those 10 days or however long you are in camp you try to help the team in whatever way you can. Once they name a manager, whoever that may be, that's not going to change.
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