The Rondo - USMNT MLS VS EUROPE
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We're here with USMNT star Austin Trustee
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and we're gonna be asking him the ultimate question. What really is the difference between MLS and European clubs
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What was it like growing up as a player in the Philadelphia Union Academy? And I think this goes for a lot of kids nowadays
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They're looking at the Philadelphia Union Academy that it is now. They're seeing the school develop
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They're seeing four or five world-class pitches. They're playing games against the Philadelphia Union Academy
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seeing guys like Jameer Johnson, Kevin Sullivan. And these guys are prospects that European clubs are looking at from the age of 15, 16
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But Austin, it wasn't like that for us. So tell us a little bit about what that experience was like seven years before these guys came out
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Yeah, it wasn't the Philadelphia Union. It wasn't really a thing. There was a thing called Union Juniors
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So I can kind of get a little bit of my backstory. So I was at actually, I also had Boy Scouts
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I was a Boy Scout. And one of my Boy Scouts played soccer. He said, you know, there's a Philadelphia Union coming
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I'm like, oh, yeah, I heard about that. They're actually doing a thing for the academy. They're making an academy a couple of years
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but there's a thing called Union Juniors. So every Tuesday, you can get free training by a guy named Phil Karn and Ian Monroe
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who are like these world-class soccer coaches. I was like, shoot, let me try out for that. So I tried out for it, made their training squad in a sense
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So it was the best players around the area. So I did that for a couple of years, and then they started the academy system
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And they already kind of made their tryout list. I wasn't on a tryout list
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so I remember the last day of Union Juniors, they said, okay, guys, last drill
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Just want to say bye before the last drill. Everyone's going to do their own thing. go out there always want to make sure i say bye thank you for the past two years you know we really
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appreciate it hope you guys wish you guys the best in all your endeavors in the future playing soccer
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great if not good luck and i remember thinking okay cool but it was the last last little drill
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it was like a three on three four on four game like five minutes and i remember just being like you know what i'm just gonna go so hard so i i was doing my thing and playing my game and one of the
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u18 coaches as i was leaving the door so my ac was kind of like i don't explain but basically you
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You leave the door and you walk out like any other place. As I was leaving the door, this guy taps you on the shoulder, like a movie
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And I'll tell you, I was two steps away from walking out the door. If I walked out of there
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I probably would have maybe played high school soccer, maybe that's it, and maybe stopped
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He tapped me on the shoulder and said, do you want to try out? I remember it, like literally today
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I even have, I have chills, you know what I'm saying? It's like, I remember that feeling of being like
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what, like you want, you want, like I felt seen. Like you want me to try out for the academy
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And he's like, yeah, yeah. I said, come tomorrow, come whenever it was. I was like, all right, I'll come
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So I ended up trying for the academy, and I actually made the team. So I remember in the Philadelphia Union, there's a new team coming in
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You get free tickets to the games. I remember putting on the Union shirt
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I'm like, holy crap. I felt like a knight in shining armor. And we got free Adidas boots
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So I was just on such a high. So I made the team. And then that year, as I was saying before, didn't play barely even in a minute
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and I later that year they had a cut list and a keep list in the coaches room and apparently what
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I was told is that I was on the cut list because again granted I played like zero games except for
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one right and I quit rain uh all right I gave you a job so there's a cut list and keep list
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and apparently the story's been told that I was on the cut list and Ian Monroe who's a Scottish
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legend played for range over here he actually lives like 20 minutes away from him he went in
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the room he's like an og like yse like wasn't part of the academy just like again he was like an og
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coach like can't say nothing to him went in the room and said oh what are you guys doing here and
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he was like oh you were doing the who's staying who's not going who's going and he saw my name on
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the cut list and he went up there with no permission no nothing grabbed my name and put it on the keep
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list and said you're not cutting him and so without that without him doing that again i because you
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It's time for the, you're in the academy, you're on the high, but you play no minutes
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And you're at such a high, it's just such an extreme low. So if I was on that cut list, I probably would have stopped playing soccer
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Have you talked to him about that? I've actually never one-on-one talked to him about it
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I've only heard, and again, I'm really close to him. I really should, but we just, I don't know
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I really should have a sit-down conversation. Why did you do that? Like, what did you see
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So yeah, he saved my academy career. And then next year, I was the captain of the U16 team
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So I went from literally 0 to 100. I was captain U16 team, played every single minute, every single game
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got on the national team, and I started for the U17 World Cup against Nigeria. Played against Victor Oseman your first match
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Yeah, so I went from literally 0 to not playing, not even being looked at
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to almost being cut in the academy to the very next year, being one of the leaders in the U17 World Cup team
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What about that European move, man? Because that's a culture thing. That's, I mean, distance, right
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Like family, all that stuff. What's that like? Not to mention too, as well, trusty, like when it happened
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like people were like, Arsenal, like Austin, trusty the Arsenal, like people kind of had eyebrows raised at it
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You know what I'm saying? How did that make you feel in that process? As to add to Tom's question
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Well, I don't really care. I mean, if people don't notice or people don appreciate what you doing the ones who actually know what they talking about know what they doing they appreciate it If someone who Joe Schmo down the street doesn appreciate or doesn recognize what I done in MLS what I was doing at the time in Colorado like I don really care
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as long as the people who I'm actually trying to go to, I'm doing what they want to see, you know
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so to have Arsenal come in and then going to Birmingham City and Birmingham City want me out
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of all the teams and whatever, we want to be all these people. It's because they see certain things
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and I'm doing that. So I don't really care about Joe Schmo talk
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Like, it doesn't really matter. It doesn't matter at the end of the day. But you have the transition. The dream always was to go overseas
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Like I said before, going overseas was not even the reality. But I always thought, like, if I go overseas, like
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I will feel so fulfilled of, like, achieving my dream. It didn't matter where it was. It could be in Syria
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It could be wherever it was. As long as it was overseas, I was good
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And I got blessed enough, obviously, for one of the best teams in the entire world to notice me and want me on their squad
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and gave me an opportunity. At the time in Colorado, I turned down a really big contract to re-sign it
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And I decided not to do that because a lot of guys would probably sign that contract
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that was offered to me. And I said no. And I remember the GM pork
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I sold really close with Colorado. I remember he was just so shocked that I turned down that deal and that money
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because my dream was bigger than that. I've always just been so fixated on achieving my goals
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because it's kind of been the spark of how I was treated and how I was like, I never want to be overlooked
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I want to achieve my goals. And I know my ability. I know what I can achieve and I'm going to go achieve it
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And so, yeah, I've turned down all that money. And I was actually on less money at Arsenal
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than I would have been there. And that's actually interesting because a lot of people don't know that, bro
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Like sometimes the MLS salaries could be higher than the ones that you get, than the deals that you get in Europe
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because for American players, it's much tough. It's tougher for us overseas. Well, they're giving you a shot
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I mean, that's just how it works. And the deal that I turned down in Colorado, I mean, at that time, the European club at that situation probably weren't going to pay that
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So yeah, I believed in myself. I believed in my ability. And then I knew I'd go right on loan and I have to earn my way
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And went straight to Birmingham and then I was player of the year. And I think I shocked a lot of, I didn't shock myself, but I think a lot of people who maybe
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you were talking about before, maybe like, oh, who's this guy? They realize, oh, shoot, this kid's actually like really good
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And I went back in the next year with Arsenal and was with the guys in that preseason and
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show them what I can do and then I was boys with all the boys boys with all the guys since then
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was it always just Arsenal like with that if you don't mind me asking man were there like other
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other offers other clubs I know you said you wouldn't mind playing like wherever the hell
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yeah there was a I'm not gonna name names but yeah there was at the time in Colorado you know
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I was doing really really well and I had a lot a lot of interest and again you see stuff from guys
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and stuff I didn't promote it I didn't my agent's not leaking into the press not doing anything I'm
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I didn't want anything to happen. I wanted to actually go there and do my thing
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and get the ability to go. So not leaking the press, not doing anything like that
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So yeah, there was multiple clubs interested. And then once Arsenal came to the mix, get everybody out of the way
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Let me, this, this. Yeah, once Arsenal come, that's it, bro. Make that happen
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So yeah, then we're full focus on Arsenal and then ended up signing
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And then started my career, then went from Sheffield. I did that Birmingham to Sheffield to play in the Premier League
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and then now got the opportunity to play in the Champions League last year. And now we're in the Europa League. I mean, unfortunately, we had the loss to get out of the Champions League
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but played Premier League and Champions League, which are right behind me
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Insane, man. That's insane. And obviously, you've been in these incredible locker rooms
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You know, you've been in Arsenal. You've been in Birmingham City. You've been at Sheffield. You've been at Celtic
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All differing degrees of success. All teams trying to, you know, chase different objectives throughout the season
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What were the biggest cultural differences that you saw at like a club? at let's say for example like an arsenal or celtic who are like really aiming to win the league trying
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to compete for titles consistently in a club like birmingham or sheffield where it's like okay
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you might be in like an elevator club you might be in the champ you might be in the premier league
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but the goal is ultimately not always winning the top tier titles it's more than my it's the
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mindset and i guess the culture around it you know i think going to going to birmingham in a
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sense they almost relegated the year before so in the sense the mindset was and really stay up
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they were trying to stay up now with bergam city and tom wagner there and tom brady they're trying
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they're trying to get remote so it's a different culture different mindset and then going to arsenal it's a whole different vibe hold up in order guys know that they're good guys know that
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the team is good the mindset isn't losing the mindset is if we don't win the premier league
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then then we failed in a sense failed for the season this is a whole different shift of trying
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to stay alive versus trying to win and going to Sheffield it again it's it's trying not to get
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relegated in a sense it should that's not my mindset but I'm seeing when you're looking around
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seeing the vibe how guys react in certain situations it really uh it you know it kind of
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it's kind of triggering and then going to going to Celtic and coming to team of this caliber and
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in a historic club like this the mindset is only only winning if you if you don win 3 or 5 or 6 in these league games in a sense it like a loss So that the difference of being so tuned in and so obsessed
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and only accepting and only really internalizing winning. That's the locker rooms that I've really thrived in
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and that's one of the ones you've kind of been in. So yeah, that's the difference between the two. What's it like, man, playing in the Champions League
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How can you explain that? And do you maybe put that in a perspective from a kid who was, you know, you were saying, oh, I was almost cut
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Like, do you know what I mean? Did that feel like a seminal moment? And then, bro, you know, that big game against Bayern Munich, like, dude, that was crazy
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I've gone into every game. I think after the fact, you really have like a pinch of your nose
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snap that really just happened. But I think before the game and as it's happening
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I have never in a sense, because of my upbringing and how my story is
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is I've never really needed external validation to know how good I am
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and what I can do. And I know that if I'm on my game
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I'm doing my thing, I can hold anybody. So when I'm playing these games
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that's the mindset I come with. I'm not coming from it with like
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oh my gosh, I'm playing these teams. I'm coming from like, oh shoot, this is my time. I've been waiting for this moment
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and I'm going to take full, full advantage of it. So that's kind of the mindset I've been
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And then after the fact, I'm like, oh my dude, I'm just like, I'm playing the Champions League
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Or like, I played 32 games in the Premier League and I've done this, I've done that, I've done this, I've done that
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So I think after the fact, I realized it because I'm talking to Mahim
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and a couple of my friends and my family being like, dude, do you realize that just happened? Like, oh, that actually did just happen
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But I don't know, I've just been so tuned in, so fixated on achieving my goals and achieving what I want to achieve
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And again, I think that mindset has allowed me to, one, come for where I come, but also to still succeed and excel
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in these situations that I've been put in and I will continue to be put in
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trusty what do you think was harder for you do you think it was harder to be at a club where the
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expectations are really high to win titles to win trophies to win consistently or is it harder to be
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on a side where like relegation is a is a real possibility you have you know basically the
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livelihood of a city on your back on the results of someone getting relegated which one do you
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think was harder on you in your career that's actually a really good question because people
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think winning is easy winning is easy and obviously losing is not you don't want to lose either
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But so when you're in that kind of relegation situation where the team is on the lower spectrum of the league, it gets very, very intense and it can quickly, quickly get toxic
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And people start turning to each other and it's an interesting environment to be in
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And with Birmingham, like that was the situation we're in. I was thriving because I was there doing my thing and I was achieving my goals
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So I knew in every single game I thought we were winning. And we ended up coming like 18th and we stayed off relegation
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but I've never been in the mindset of like, oh, it's a relegation team. Like I thought, or in Sheffield
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I thought we were going to win the Premier League. That was my mindset. I think you need to be, need to have that mindset
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You can't just go in the game and think you're going to lose. The winning side of things, say with like Arsenal and coming to Celtic, it's, people think winning is so easy
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and it's not, it's really, really hard. When you get, when you get, when you're excelling through football
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you get really good, once your skill sets a certain level, the key thing is mentally being switched on
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So when you get to that, in a sense, that level of being so tuned in and it's like a high, high frequency of like you're zoned into
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your sport, into like your mindset, your skillset and how you're seeing things. You got to learn
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very quickly how to stay in that frequency. Make sure it's always turned on. You know
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when you step away from the pitch, it's really hard to like get out of that mindset. You can ask my wife. That's the hardest thing is staying at that, staying at that frequency of really excellence
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because you can't, can't afford not to be excellent, especially in my position. If you mess up like that's it you know so yeah it's uh it's it's different it's different mindsets
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and from that from that form that you've had on club level you were able to take it into the
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national team now and you know you're playing on the national team you're getting called up
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by you know birth both greg berhalter and mauricio pochettino what are the biggest differences in
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camp between the two managers now that you've been a part of both cycles yeah greg greg greg
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called me up. He didn't call me up when the teams, the times I wanted, obviously with Copa
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America and World Cup, and that was obviously very, very upsetting. And me and him have had
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conversations. So I want to talk about that. But Mariso, it's actually really good. I think it's
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really fresh having a new face come in. And to have a guy of his caliber as coach
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he's got Coach Messi, Neymar, Mbappe, all those guys. He has a backing of every single player
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I think to have a coach of that caliber, you can't say nothing to him
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You can't say anything. He knows. He's been done that and you have to respect that
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And I think that's the biggest thing. And he has like, again, he has like an aura around him
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where we all look up to him. And I think that's what you want as a national coach
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One other question about that. What's it like playing for the national team? That gotta be so generic But like you put that jersey on I mean Raheem faking it right now but like what it like it the best feeling in the entire world it um i remember when i made my debut it it i
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felt again putting the shirt on and feeling like it's like shining armor that that's that's what
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it feels like and uh that feeling never never grows away and that's why i i will do anything
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possible to to be on that team be a player of that magnitude for the for the team and be there
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you know be the guy for the for the u.s and i i know i can do it i know my ability i've shown it
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and uh it's just about getting the opportunities and when i get the opportunity to thrive in it i
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know when i get the opportunity that it's it's game over so how has it been for you trust as well
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because you're competing with friends for these positions like you know what i'm saying like this
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is not just like you know you're playing on the u.s men's national team you don't know anybody on the team like everybody on that team we know each other we're all 98s 99s we grew up together from
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you know mark mckenzie to christian pulisic to weston mckinney to tyler adams we all grew up with
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each other we developed with each other we trained with each other from the age of 15 till now as a
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grown adult you're still competing with these guys to get a spot how do you kind of get that
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mentality where it's like yo i know these are my homies but like i gotta get my spot bro like the
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world cup is next year like what kind of mindset are you gonna be putting on when if you get called
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into that next camp and what is it like competing against friends for these spots i don't view it as
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competing against friends and at the end of the day we don't make the decision the the coach makes
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a decision and the staff so it's about it's about proving to them of your what your ability is and
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what you can do and how you can affect the team in a positive way and also proving to the fans
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that hey i'm here too and i can be this person for the team so i don't really view as you would
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as competing against friends or whoever it is it's not really like that's happy yes it is a
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situation in a sense but we don't we don't make the decisions you know you just gotta you gotta
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show up there and improve yourself really. And then how do you put yourself in that mindset to
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really compete and really be like, okay, I want to be on this World Cup squad next year. What do
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you think are the things that you have to improve on and do in order to be there? Really, it's a good kid called in. I think it was unfortunate. I tore my plan of fashion
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just coming back a couple of days ago. So yeah, that kind of ruined some momentum
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but it's about getting back into momentum and showing them that, hey, I'm here as well. I'm performing at an extremely high level. Look at all my stats. Look at all the people I'm defending
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in the Champions League and now we're in the Europa League. And then game-wise and league-wise, I'm performing
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My passes, my accuracy, I'll look at all my stats. And when you get the opportunity to get called up
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it's about performing in there. And once you get the opportunity outside of training to play in the games, it's about not giving any excuse
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giving anything and really set in stone why I should be in anybody who's playing should be starting
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And that's just the mindset of a professional footballer. And anybody competing for spots
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competing for such a historic tournament playing the world cup in the united states that's that's a
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that's a proposition of any any american you know so i think we're all coming with that coming with
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that mindset real quick as a follow-up to that mate you've seen like with pochettino when he's
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brought like some of his guys in they've like performed and they've stayed in do you know what i mean like i think of a diego luna for example like that kind of like those lads when they've
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come into the team and performed do you kind of like i guess take heart or like be encouraged from
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that mindset like you've seen that that's maybe the attitude from the coach yeah i think with any
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coach and especially uh marissa it's about performing so if guys are getting called in
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and taking a shot and performing that's the name that's the name of the game that's why that's why
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we do what we do you know so for guys who's called in to uh take a shot and do well that's that's
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what you can wish for for sure do you think i feel like obviously you have to do what you got to do
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within the camp like you said but obviously at the end of the day it is up to the manager it's
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the manager's decision do you think that as a manager do you think you have the players have
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more of a fair chance under pochettino than greg berhalter to make that squad in terms of like
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listen there's not as many favorites there could be some new players coming in fresh faces that
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come and shake things up mauricio he's letting people have a shop and letting new people come in
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and he is um you know that's what you want if you if you're a player on the outside who wasn't
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necessarily the one's getting called in every single camp no matter what you know and he's
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letting opportunity to letting for opportunity to happen for other guys to come in that's what
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you want and i think we're doing that just to just to wrap it up then the cheesy question
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what's one piece of advice you'd give to the next generation man again this is probably cliche but
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really is back yourself the only person who really is going to back you is is yourself and how you do
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that is you got to show yourself in every opportunity every single moment you possibly get
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to to show out show yourself that you know what i think i can do this i then from the
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think that like I know I can do this you know so at the end of day you need to completely completely
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back yourself and trust yourself and trust your instincts and trust your capabilities and all
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your skill set because at the end of day it has to start with you and then if I if you believe
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yourself and trust in your ability it's going to resonate with everybody else but if you don't do
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it no one's why would someone think that about you
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