GLENDALE, Ariz. — Cavan Sullivan scored his first goal for the U.S. men’s soccer team on Saturday night, and he did it in spectacular fashion.
In the latest edition of the U.S.-Mexico rivalry, the 17-year-old Union phenom stole pass and launched a nearly 35-yard chip shot for the Americans’ second goal of a 3-0 win, electrifying a packed crowd at State Farm Stadium.
It made him the youngest goal-scorer in senior U.S. men’s team history at 17 years and 5 days.
CAVAN SULLIVAN SCORES IN HIS FIRST USA-MEXICO GAME 😤
Sullivan was in the starting lineup for the second time in three games, as U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino fulfilled a pregame promise to have another mix of youth and veterans.
It was no surprise that for a game of this magnitude, Pochettino went with eight veterans instead of a closer-to-even split. The other two newcomers were striker Julian Hall, who impressed with a goal in each of the two previous games, and goalkeeper Diego Kochen.
The veteran contingent included Media’s Auston Trusty, who started at centerback next to Chris Richards. It was Trusty’s second time facing Mexico, two years after his first came in a friendly in Guadalajara.
Almost everything about the surroundings was as expected, including the pro-Mexico crowd. (It was always going to be that way in this part of the country, as it would be at any NFL stadium.) The one surprise was Mexico’s late scratch of its teen sensation, Gilberto Mora, due to an ankle injury.
Mexico had the better of the play for most of the first half-hour, which was also expected with its veteran-laden squad. But the U.S. scored first by hitting El Tri in one of its biggest weak spots: goalkeeper.
In the 28th minute, a rare moment arose when Mexico’s press backed off the U.S. defense. That allowed Americans the Americans to put together one of their first sustained passing sequences of the night.
It led to Sebastian Berhalter sending Alex Freeman up the right wing, and he played a ball between two defenders that Gio Reyna hustled to reach in open space. As Reyna neared the end line, he turned a half-shot-half-pass back toward the middle. Mexican netminder Raúl Rangel completely misplayed it, and Hall pounced for his latest smart finish.
Three games, three goals for Julian Hall, who starts celebration, then gives a little smile like he can’t believe what is happening. pic.twitter.com/vKwTKd0spL
Sullivan didn’t do much attack-wise in the first half, but he was a lively high-presser — which no doubt will have pleased the U.S. coaching staff. He was on the ball much more in the early stages of the second half, and made some incisive runs.
Kochen took the spotlight in the 58th with a leaping save of Roberto Alvarado’s shot off a free kick sequence. There had been some iffy moments for the 20-year-old up to then, in his second national team game and first start. But that play showed why his prospect stock is so high.
Then came the moment that will live on highlight reels for a long time.
Rangel stood on the ball well outside his 18-yard box looking for a teammate to pass to. His eventual play was a softball on the ground that Sullivan jumped on. A turn and first touch settled the ball, and his second touch was a chip shot from nearly 35 yards. It sailed over Rangel and floated right into the middle of the net.
As the crowd erupted, Sullivan screamed, then ran to the corner of the stands near where the U.S. substitutes were warming up — including Union teammates Neil Pierre and Frankie Westfield. Within seconds, the entire American squad had swarmed him to celebrate.
Sullivan emerged in the grasp of a big embrace from two of the most experienced veterans, Richards and Robinson. Adams, newly re-appointed as the U.S. captain, arrived next for another bearhug and an exchange of words.
The moment felt with emotional significance. And if that wasn’t enough, the scoreboard told another story to savor. It read 2-0 — dos a cero. The Americans’ favorite score against their favorite rival lived again, thanks to their bright new stars.
But this time, that wasn’t the final score. Malik Tillman capped things off in the 85th, outhustling Mexican centerback Diego Campillo to a loose ball and smashing it first-time from 12 yards.
💥🇺🇸 ¡¡TILLMAN LE GANA LA CARRERA A CAMPILLO Y SENTENCIA LA GOLEADA!!
⚽🔥 Diego Campillo dejó correr el balón, pero Malik Tillman aceleró, le ganó por velocidad y aprovechó el error defensivo para aumentar la ventaja de @USMNT.
Between those goals, there was one of many old-fashioned ruckuses like these teams have always had. In the 69th, Mexico’s Mateo Chávez barged into Yunus Musah off the ball, and referee Selvin Brown of Honduras gave Chávez a straight red card.
Sullivan exited right after his goal, replaced by Yunus Musah. Justin Ellis entered for Hall at the same time. In the final minutes, Pochettino used three more of the eight total subs available to him: Brooklyn Raines for Reyna, Peyton Miller for Berhalter, and Mathis Albert for Tillman.
By the end, most of the crowd was streaming for the exits. But the U.S. fans stuck around, and serenaded the team with a rendition of John Denver’s “Country Roads,” the song that became the team’s anthem at the World Cup.
TEMPE, Ariz. — In another world, Cavan Sullivan might have followed his 8-year-old self’s baseball dreams in Bridesburg and become a shortstop.
Maybe Frankie Westfield would have joined his siblings in football or basketball at Father Judge High, not far from their home in Northeast Philadelphia’s Morrell Park. Perhaps Neil Pierre would have heeded those who saw his surging frame in Blue Bell and stuck with his young love of the hardwood.
In this world, though, none of those things happened. They chose a different game, coming together on their local soccer team. And now, as the young men turn into adults, the world’s game has launched them into the spotlight.
They haven’t had much time to appreciate it lately, between the Union’s frantic summer and their first journey with the senior U.S. men’s national team. This week, a moment finally arrived, as the trio sat down together to talk with their hometown newspaper.
Over their shoulders on a hotel terrace, the sun baked a sweeping view of a metropolis in a desert — about as un-Philadelphian as a landscape gets. But within seconds, it felt like they were right back home.
Neil Pierre (center) and Cavan Sullivan (right) working out together during Thursday’s U.S. practice in Phoenix.Jonathan Tannenwald
“The chemistry is obviously there,” Sullivan said. “We enjoy every second we play together and we try and have fun, all while competing, and we like to all do it with a positive mindset. I’m really happy and honored to be with these guys, and proud of them.”
At times, there’s more to take in off the field than on it: new teammates and coaches, practices, meetings, and a hectic travel schedule of five cities in 18 days.
“It just makes it easier, being with the guys that you know and you grew up with throughout the academy,” Westfield said. “I know it’s a long time away from our team, but just having these two guys to have alongside, to join in with conversation or whether it’s at dinner tables or stuff like that with the other guys, just makes it so much easier.”
As young as they all are, they’re already accustomed to living in a fishbowl. Sullivan, who just turned 17, is the biggest example: swooned over by the world’s chattering classes as he awaits a future with English power Manchester City. Pierre, 18, also has a growing legion of suitors, reportedly including Spanish juggernaut Barcelona.
Frankie Westfield (left) and Cavan Sullivan sharing a laugh on the practice field.Jonathan Tannenwald
Westfield, 20, isn’t quite that famous yet. But while brother Rocco was winning back-to-back Catholic League hoops titles, Frankie was becoming a locked-in Union starter and major prospect for the 2028 U.S. Olympic team.
‘This is our dream’
Each has gained much from this, and stands to gain much more. They also realize the scale of sacrifices required.
It struck a chord with many people when Pierre said last week that his six-month loan to Denmark’s Lyngby earlier this year was the closest thing he’ll have to a college experience. He and the others will never have a traditional young adulthood.
“Yeah, we didn’t get to go to college, but we’re obviously very grateful for where we’re at,” said Pierre, who has been taking online courses through a partnership between MLS and Syracuse University. Sullivan will begin the same program soon.
Whether with the Union or the national team, Neil Pierre (left) always stands out thanks to his 6-foot-7 frame.Jonathan Tannenwald
“Growing up, for all three of us, this is our dream, the days that we live now,” said Westfield, who backed out of a commitment to Penn State in 2024 to turn pro with the Union. “We wake up, we get to play soccer every single day. We’ve always dreamed of that, and also, to represent our country has been one of our biggest dreams growing up. “
He then spoke just as strongly about the value of time away from the field and keeping watch on one’s mental health.
“Just to clear our minds and get away from other things like that, I think that’s one of the biggest importances of recovery,” he said. “In terms of mentally staying sharp, just getting away from the game is also how we stay sharp in a way.”
Imagine, even if you aren’t a soccer fan, the emotions of the moment: walking through the tunnel and onto the field, a USA crest on your shirt, then standing for the national anthems.
The rest of us might take the scene for granted, given how often it happens. But players don’t, especially when it’s their first time.
“It’s kind of cliché to say you can get goose bumps and stuff, but honestly, like that’s what I felt like,” Westfield said.
“It’s so different from your club — it’s way more than that, it’s bigger than that, it’s your whole nation,” Pierre said. “To have that pride and also that responsibility, the weight of the country on your shoulders. … It was just an amazing feeling.”
“The national anthem means a lot to me, and I take pride in singing it and also having goose bumps,” he said. “I was representing my family that day, but also my entire nation. To be able to do that is pretty special.”
As they spoke, they awaited the marquee moment of this stretch: Saturday’s showdown with Mexico at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. (10 p.m., TNT, Telemundo 62). It will be the teams’ first meeting since the Gold Cup final 15 months ago, and so much has happened since then that the rivalry has fallen off the marquee.
This game will bring it roaring back, with a near-capacity crowd expected at the 63,400-seat home of the NFL’s Cardinals.
The U.S. and Mexico last met in last year’s Gold Cup final, when Alex Freeman (center) was among the U.S. players auditioning for the World Cup.Ashley Landis
“We all grew up watching USA-Mexico,” Sullivan said, “from when …”
He paused for a moment, looked across the table, and said, “I’ve got to be careful.”
The veterans on hand laughed, and excused him — though with a brief pause for a history lesson. This reporter’s first U.S.-Mexico epic was the inaugural “Dos a Cero” triumph 25 years ago. A U.S. Soccer staffer in the next chair had been around even longer.
Then it was back to the present, and Sullivan’s first chance to make his mark.
“It’s USA-Mexico, and it’s the biggest game of our lives,” Sullivan said. “So we’re trying to take it day by day, but we are excited.”
Pierre relayed the excitement across the U.S. camp: “Coming from the U.S. staff and everyone, we know this is a big game. … We used to watch these games, and now to be there, it’s just an amazing feeling.”
“I won’t lie, we’ve been talking about it for a while now, before we even left for this,” he said. “Guys may fold up in moments like this where it’s bigger occasions, a bigger team in terms of Mexico, but these are moments you live for. These are the games you play for, and these are the games you live for, and we’re looking forward to going out there.”
Nor do these guys take for granted doing it as Philadelphia Union players specifically. They know they are part of a lineage, and that Auston Trusty is as proud to be with them on this roster as Alejandro Bedoya is to watch from back home.
Auston Trusty (left) on the ball in front of Cavan Sullivan during a training drill.Jonathan Tannenwald
“They say keep doing what you’re doing, trust in the process,” Pierre said.
“The proof is in the pudding, right?” Sullivan added. “The message from the Union and from those national team guys is just be yourself, and do what got you here when you make it to camp. And I think Neil, Frankie and I are trying to do just that.”
Westfield knew the names in that lineage just as well, from Bedoya’s era to more recent ones like Brenden Aaronson and Nathan Harriel.
“Seeing them grow and also represent the national team only gives younger guys like us confidence, knowing that we can go out there and do that as well,” he said.
Frankie Westfield having some fun in practice.Jonathan Tannenwald
They appreciate the welcome they’ve gotten from the rest of this U.S. team’s veterans, which is not to be taken for granted. The culture certainly isn’t like that on the club side of the world’s game, and it often isn’t with other national teams, either.
“I feel like all these guys accepted us into our family,” Pierre said. “We had a team dinner and we all talked about it: even though this is the first time, it’s like we’re a whole family already. We laugh, sit, you can talk to anyone, it’s no stress. I think it’s a very good bond that we’ve had.”
There are still reminders of how young the trio are, and that each step is to be taken one at a time. But it’s a milestone on its own that they have made it this far, and they clearly won’t forget it.
“We used to call these guys by their last names: [Gio] Reyna, [Sergiño] Dest,” Sullivan said. “Now we know them on a first-name basis. Every moment is sort of like a pinch-me moment, and we’re having fun.”
The U.S. men’s soccer team made it two wins in two games to start this season’s stretch of friendlies, beating Chile 4-2 on Tuesday in St. Louis.
Union defenders Neil Pierre and Frankie Westfield were in the U.S. starting lineup, earning their first national team starts after making their debuts as substitutes in Saturday’s win over Peru.
Both played just over an hour, and while they weren’t perfect they showed their potential. Pierre had 74 touches, four clearances, one tackle, and four defensive recoveries, and completed 60 of 68 passes. Westfield had 46 touches, two interceptions, one tackle, and three recoveries, and completed 27 of 34 passes.
As with the Peru game, U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino mixed young and old players. But with 10 changes to the starting lineup, it wasn’t surprising that there was a lack of chemistry early.
Sergiño Dest (left) watches Frankie Westfield battle for the ball with Chile’s Nils Reichmuth (right) during the first half.Jeff Roberson
Chile looked better, forcing U.S. goalkeeper Chris Brady into four saves before Ben Brereton Díaz hit the crossbar in the 34th minute. Barely a minute later, Darío Osorio hit a post.
The U.S. scored first, though, in the 37th. After Gio Reyna and Sergiño Dest combined down the left, Dest uncorked some fancy footwork on a charge forward, then squared for Julian Hall. But the striker deftly let the ball run between his legs, and an onrushing Sebastian Berhalter slammed it home.
Sebastian Berhalter scores again to make it 1-0 for USMNT.
Chile equalized in first-half stoppage time off a second straight corner kick that the U.S. failed to clear. Nearly a dozen players combined from the teams piled into each other in the six-yard box, and Diego Ulloa got the decisive touch.
The teams agreed to use nine substitutes each. Pochettino made his first at halftime, removing Brady and sending in Brian Schwake of MLS-leading Nashville SC.
That ensured each of the four goalkeepers on this U.S. roster would have a half of action under their belts heading into Saturday’s showdown with rival Mexico in Glendale, Ariz. (10 p.m., TNT, Telemundo 62).
Schwake got a rough welcome. Within four minutes, Maxi Gutiérrez beat a high-pressing Westfield on the flank, then raced away, cut in, and curled a superb 20-yarder around Pierre.
Pochettino made five changes at the hour mark, and all the entrants were veterans: Tyler Adams for Adri Mehmeti, Alex Freeman for Westfield, Chris Richards for Pierre, Auston Trusty for Miles Robinson, and Malik Tillman for Dest.
Two more swaps came in the 71st: Damion Downs for Hall and Mathis Albert replaced Reyna.
But for all the attacking moves, a centerback gave the U.S. the lead. Richards was unmarked when Berhalter’s corner arrived in the box, and had a wide-open lane for a thumping header.
The last substitute was Cavan Sullivan for Berhalter in the 83rd, earning the Northeast Philadelphian native his second cap a day after celebrating his 17th birthday.
Albert, another 17-year-old, finished off the scoring in the 93rd by getting on the end of a free kick play. Robinson served it, Trusty headed it from the end line into the middle of the box, and the Borussia Dortmund winger charged forward to slam it off the bar and in.
Chile took out its anger over the night after that when Leandro Hernández kicked at Schwake after he had picked up the ball. Richards took exception, and within seconds there was a full-scale melee including the benches — even the coaches. Pochettino ended up right in the middle of it.
ORLANDO — Everyone knew who the man of the hour was Saturday night, especially the two guys who know him best.
And if it wasn’t enough that Frankie Westfield and Neil Pierre are Cavan Sullivan’s Union teammates, they walked right by him in the postgame interview area as a pack of reporters stood by the 16-year-old.
Of course Sullivan was the big story, having started and played well in his senior U.S. men’s soccer team debut. (And for the record, he might not be a 16-year-old anymore by the time you read this. His 17th birthday is Monday.)
He wasn’t the only story, though. Westfield and Pierre also made their debuts, part of a total of 11 players who earned their first caps in the 4-1 win over Peru. Both entered as late-game substitutes.
Neil Pierre (center) and Frankie Westfield (right) got to celebrate on the field with Cavan Sullivan after the game.Alex Menendez
They all deserve a share of the spotlight, and U.S. Soccer made sure they got them. Each received a commemorative game ball in the locker room.
“This is a moment we’ve both been working for, for our whole lives,” said Westfield, a 20-year-old right back from Morrell Park in Northeast Philadelphia. “Truly an honor and a blessing to go out there and support the team, and help the team in any way possible. And I’m very thankful that we got the win today — just made it even better.”
Pierre, an 18-year-old centerback from Blue Bell and originally Harrisburg, was equally thrilled.
“You dream of this as a kid,” he said. “Coming out to the field and then also finishing the game off and winning it, obviously it was a great feeling, and a great moment for us and the team.”
Frankie Westfield at work during a U.S. practice last week.Jonathan Tannenwald
Pierre said he had some family in the stands. Westfield didn’t have any, but they are expected at later games in this window.
The duo didn’t get to play with Sullivan in the game, since he exited just after the hour mark and they entered later: Westfield in the 77th minute and Pierre in the 88th. But they enjoyed what they saw from the bench.
“I was happy for him to be able to start and make a great performance, and [he was] just living it up in the moment and enjoying it,” Pierre said.
While the players spoke, the Union were in the midst of their 4-2 win over Orlando City back at Subaru Park — up 2-0 right then, late in the first half. MLS played a round of league games during the FIFA window because of the summer World Cup break, going back to an old bad habit. This could be the last time, with the big calendar flip coming next year.
“We were checking” in the locker room, Westfield said. “Five starters [missing], the whole right side being gone, that says a lot about the fight in the team, and the hunger. … Hopefully they can hold [the lead], and I know they will hold it.”
As the U.S. team headed off into the night, bound for a flight back to the national training center, his hunch was proven true.
ORLANDO — There were hints in the last few days that Mauricio Pochettino might choose to make Cavan Sullivan’s national team debut be a start against Peru, and they proved correct.
When the word went out Saturday afternoon, there was plenty of excitement in the stadium and on social media. But when Sullivan was subbed out after just over an hour, he hadn’t made a highlight-reel play.
Instead, he gave a performance that, had it been done by a veteran, would have been called perfectly solid.
This should be seen as great news.
Cavan Sullivan (left) celebrating with Justin Ellis (center) and the rest of the team after Ellis opened the scoring in just the fourth minute.Phelan M. Ebenhack
Sure, there weren’t any of the flashy moments that Sullivan has delivered for the Union in recent weeks. In fact, on a few occasions in the first half, he chose to make quieter plays when he could have gone big.
But for a 16-year-old to make those choices in his first senior national team game, with the nerves that surely were there on top of all the pressure he already faces?
That made Sullivan worthy of the praise Pochettino lavished on him afterward.
“I am so happy with his performance,” he said. “I feel really proud. Sixteen years old, and performing, and fighting, and playing with personality, with character.”
Leading up to the game, Pochettino seemed intent on not singling out Sullivan or any of the other new young players on this U.S. roster until they had played a game. Now they had, with 11 of the 12 newcomers getting on the field, so Pochettino could let it out.
“Of course, he’s a kid that absorbs a lot of pressure from the environment,” he said. “But I think now he’s with people, like he’s with people in his club, [so] that we are going to do everything to protect, and to help, and to support him to keep him evolving. And there’s no doubt that he’s very smart. He’s so great, and he only needs time — like Mathis Albert, like Zavier Gozo.”
From there, Pochettino reeled off the names of almost every other newcomer on the squad, drawing laughter from the room. But he knows Sullivan is different because he’s younger than the rest; in fact now the second-youngest starter in team history.
That’s why the manager spoke of “feeling a sense of responsibility, trying to guide him with discipline and professionalism, showing him the way, because at 16 he’s still a kid who needs to mature. There are many things — just like us, too, with 50 years — to keep learning, because it’s a constant learning process.”
Another was his admission that yes, he was as nervous before kickoff as anyone would expect.
“Of course there was nerves,” he said. “I was super excited. A little bit of both. Pregame was definitely nerve-wracking.”
Cavan Sullivan (right) talking with Mauricio Pochettino at the start of training camp.Taylor Banner
Beyond that, the national media got to see that Auston Trusty was right when he recently told The Inquirer about Sullivan’s humility. Spend time with Sullivan in person and you see the human beyond the Instagram highlights.
“It’s crazy that I represented my country at the highest level with the men’s national team,” he said. “I’m really happy just to have done this. … The dream is a reality. It’s pretty surreal.”
“I just think, yeah, when you’re surrounded by players with such high quality, it makes it so much easier,” Sullivan said. “Like I said, I’m still learning. Chemistry’s a real thing, so, yeah, we’re taking it day-by-day, game-by-game.”
Other players saw it too, starting with the one who lined up behind him on the right flank.
“Knowing that he’s only 16, it shows maturity,” said right back Alex Freeman, who this year vaulted from Orlando City to Spain’s Villarreal to World Cup stardom before turning 22 in August. “Showing that he knows when to choose his moments, when to be flashy, when to take his chances and when to keep the ball. … He picked his moments to go one-v-one, he also cut in [at] moments to be able to combine.”
“My message to him today was pretty simple: just play, play with your instinct, be yourself, do what he’s been doing the last eight to 12 weeks in MLS that brought him here,” Reyna said. “Obviously, he’s got a load of talent. Looking forward to continuing to see him develop — he’s only 16, which is crazy. But yeah, he’s been great.”
Reyna admitted to being “surprised” to see in person that Sullivan is “a really, really hard worker … I didn’t think he was not going to work hard, but the work he’s shown has been great.”
Cavan Sullivan (center) listening to a coach during a practice a few days ago.Jonathan Tannenwald
It was not lost on anyone standing there that in normal-life terms, Reyna is still not far removed from the 2022 World Cup scandal that centered specifically on his work ethic. But maybe that made the words count a little more.
Not for nothing, Pochettino continued his praise of the veterans for how they’ve welcomed the newcomers into the program. He knew he’d get a lot of questions about players like Sullivan, goal-scorers Julian Hall and Justin Ellis, and others. But he insisted that the spotlight be shared.
“The headline is, the senior players deserve massive credit in the way that they treat, in the way that they guide, in the way that they support, in the way that they welcome, in the way that they create an environment very comfortable for them to feel like home,” Pochettino said. “I think it’s a massive value for us to have the senior players helping in this way.”
This was just one night, and the 2030 World Cup is a long way away. For a first impression, though, this sure was a memorable one.
ORLANDO — Cavan Sullivan made his senior U.S. men’s soccer debut at the first available opportunity, as the 16-year-old was part of the starting lineup in Saturday’s 4-1 win over Peru.
Taking the field two days before his 17th birthday, Sullivan became the fourth-youngest player in senior men’s national team history and second-youngest starter.
He was a lively presence in a 61-minute run: 35 touches, including seven in the 18-yard box, 25 completed passes of 28 attempted, one shot, and one defensive recovery.
He even raised the Peruvians’ ire at one point midway through the first half. Chasing after a potential rebound, he was pushed from behind into goalkeeper Pedro Gallese and tumbled over him into the net. Referee Steffon Dewar of Jamaica quickly got in the middle of things to calm them down, and gave Sullivan a yellow card after Gallese was attended to by medical staff.
On two occasions later in the first half, Sullivan had opportunities to go for spectacular plays on the ball if he wanted to. But both times, he stayed restrained and made simpler moves to help teammates.
Tactically, he played in a right-sided attacking midfield role in a 4-2-3-1 formation. It’s the same area of the field he plays in with the Union, though in slightly different tactics under Ryan Richter’s 4-2-2-2 setup.
Sullivan was one of four players with Union or Philadelphia ties in Saturday’s starting lineup, along with Media’s Auston Trusty and Chester’s George Campbell at centerback, and Wayne’s Matt Freese at goalkeeper.
Trusty and Freese are former Union players, and Trusty and Campbell were youth soccer teammates at the former Nether United club in Delaware County.
Campbell tried out for the Union academy at one point and didn’t get in, though his brothers Will and Rob did. The family moved to Atlanta in 2013, so George grew up with Atlanta United. He played professionally there from 2020 to 2022, then moved to CF Montréal before the 2023 season, and joined English second-tier club West Bromwich Albion last year.
The U.S. opened the scoring in just four minutes, with forward Justin Ellis delivering in his club home stadium with Orlando City. But the good mood didn’t last, as a giveaway by Campbell led to Gianluca Lapadula’s equalizer in the 15th.
Each side was allowed 11 substitutions per game, far more than soccer’s usual five, and U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino used all of his.
The first came at halftime, Freese departing for much-touted prospect Diego Kochen. The 20-year-old Miami native grew up at Spanish superpower Barcelona, and is currently at Denmark’s Lyngby — a club part-owned by the Union — on a loan for the season.
There was a wave of five subs just past the hour mark. Sullivan, Ellis, Gio Reyna (who assisted Ellis’ goal with a free kick), Yunus Musah, and Peyton Miller left, and Mathis Albert, Julian Hall, Zavier Gozo, Sebastian Berhalter, and Antonee Robinson entered.
Albert made an instant impact, darting down the left flank and winning a penalty kick on a foul that replays showed started outside the 18-yard box. But with no video review in use, the call stood, and the play showed why the 17-year-old from Germany’s Borussia Dortmund is another big-time prospect.
Malik Tillman stepped up to the spot and calmly dispatched his shot.
Hall extended the lead in the 72nd, crashing the back post to finish Sebastian Berhalter’s cross. Robinson also got credit on the play, hitting a beautiful cross-field pass that Berhalter settled before his assist.
Five minutes later, Westfield subbed in, meaning he coincidentally made his senior U.S. debut on the same field where he made his Union first-team debut in last year’s season opener. Brooklyn Raines also entered, with Alex Freeman and Tillman departing.
18-year-old Julian Hall off the bench to score on his debut.
The last moves came in the 88th. Neil Pierre replaced Campbell — meaning all three Union players made their senior U.S debuts in this game — and Adri Mehmeti replaced Tyler Adams.
Berhalter capped off the scoring with a 25-yard thunderbolt in the 90th.
In all, 11 of the 12 newcomers on the U.S. squad got on the field, with Campbell earning his second career cap. Goalkeeper Brian Schwake was only one of the bunch who didn’t play.
ORLANDO — After a week of work in the lush surroundings of U.S. Soccer’s national training center, the fun now begins for the next era of its senior men’s team.
Saturday’s matchup with Peru (4:30 p.m., TNT, Telemundo 62) kicks off a four-game, 10-day road show stretching from Florida to Georgia, Missouri, Arizona, and Minnesota. It’s the first time FIFA has held a national team window this long outside of the summer, but it means Mauricio Pochettino and his coaching staff can get a proper look at the 12 newcomers on this 28-player squad.
It also means all 28 players have a shot at playing time, and yes, that includes Cavan Sullivan. Pochettino was peppered with questions about the Union’s 16-year-old phenom in his news conference Friday morning, as the national media continues to be drawn to Sullivan’s hype train.
Pochettino didn’t say much about Sullivan directly, or any of his other young prospects. But the manager did acknowledge that the Bridesburg native has made a good first impression.
Cavan Sullivan (right) working out with U.S. teammates in a drill on Thursday.Jonathan Tannenwald
“Well, if we only talk about his performance, he’s doing really well in MLS, in his club in Philadelphia,” Pochettino said in one of his answers. “Talking only about that, I think he’s ready. But the rest of the players, too, are ready.”
A few minutes later, he added: “I think he’s doing really well in Philadelphia, and that is why he is here. He’s mature enough on the field to be there and to compete.”
A step back from individuals brought a lot more perspective. It’s clear that Pochettino has embraced bringing in a new era of young players, as the U.S. program looks ahead to the 2028 Olympics and the 2030 World Cup.
“Of course you want to talk about the kids, and it’s amazing to have on board those players,” he said. “First of all, because they have talent — and they are showing their real talent, because they have an amazing capacity and quality. And then the energy was amazing. It’s very contagious, that energy.”
Cavan Sullivan (center) with Mathis Albert of Germany’s Borussia Dortmund (left) and Brooklyn Raines of the New England Revolution, all of whom hope to be part of the U.S. men’s soccer team’s new era.Jonathan Tannenwald
He also spoke of how well the newcomers have blended in with the veterans, including a dozen from this summer’s World Cup team.
“I think the mix between senior players and the young [players] has become very organic and natural now, after a few days,” Pochettino said. “It’s a group of players [where] you don’t feel that someone is called for the first time or someone has 100 caps. … Of course, the younger [players] show tremendous respect to the senior players — they are humble enough to listen. But also, the senior players, they are so good in the way that they treat the young kids, because they also show respect to them.”
There’s nothing new in soccer about teenage pros, but they are especially prevalent in the world’s game right now. The U.S. will likely encounter another marquee one next Saturday in Mexico’s Gilberto Mora. Others are dotted around Europe and South America: England’s Max Dowman, Brazil’s Estevão, Spain’s Lamine Yamal, and many more.
While American soccer has mostly gotten used to them by now, there’s still a novelty element, with Sullivan serving as a clear example.
Neil Pierre (second from left) stretching at the start of Friday’s practice.Jonathan Tannenwald
But one thing these young American newcomers are experiencing? The initiation ritual of singing in front of the team.
We don’t yet know what song Sullivan chose, or Union teammates Neil Pierre and Frankie Westfield. Zavier Gozo of England’s Crystal Palace (and formerly Real Salt Lake) admitted earlier this week that he chose “Let Me Love You” by Mario, which was written three years before the outside back was born.
Chris Richards spoke on behalf of the veterans when he said, “there’s some people who are really good singers, and I’ll tell you Zavier did really well … and I’ll say there are some people who probably shouldn’t sing anymore.”
Pochettino was entertained. He also used it as one of many moments to learn about the players off the field.
“When they arrive, the first day on the training ground with us, in the hotel, and how they talk, how they move, how they are,” he said. “How quirky they are when they go in front of 60 or 70 people and start to sing like a pop star. You start to see their personality, their character.”
Mauricio Pochettino has been in a good mood this week.Jonathan Tannenwald
And while some American cultural references still go over Pochettino’s head two years into the job, one thing about his communication with the young players is universal.
“After talking with them, it’s like you feel younger,” he said. “It’s a long time that I didn’t feel this way, talking and working with a group of players. That is amazing for us, for the present and for the future.”
Much of the talk surrounding the Union has focused on the turnaround the team has shown since returning to league action after a reset courtesy of the FIFA World Cup. It was a seven-week break that left the team searching for answers about how a season with so much promise ended with just one win after 15 matches in Major League Soccer.
On Saturday, the Union will embark on Matchday No. 27 when they host Orlando City inside Subaru Park (7:30 p.m., Apple TV). A win would set a franchise record of 12 straight matches unbeaten in MLS, an impressive run accomplished under an interim coach and with a sizable chunk of the roster away on international duty during the first FIFA window since the World Cup.
The club’s second-half surge has them in great position to earn a trip to the MLS Cup playoffs, with seven games remaining before brackets and seeds are set. However, what’s often overlooked during the Union’s 11-match unbeaten run are the numbers behind their surge up the Eastern Conference standings and the metrics that have made them a contender again instead of an afterthought.
Here are a few figures that stand out.
3
The number of head coaching roles within the Union by current interim head coach Ryan Richter. In addition to once being the director of the Union’s Junior Academy, Richter, 37, was also head coach of the club’s developmental team, Union II, before taking over as interim head coach of the senior team in May.
Cavan Sullivan pays tribute to LeBron James with his celebration after scoring a goal for the Union against CF Montréal on Sept. 5. Philadelphia Union
8
The number of wins and draws the Union have amassed in 23 league meetings against Orlando City. They’ll be looking to avenge a 4-3 loss to the Lions at Inter & Co. Stadium on May 13. It was a game in which Cavan Sullivan scored his first MLS goal, but a last-minute clincher by Orlando sent the Union to their second straight loss in May.
Eight is also the number of goals by a player with the last name “Sullivan” on the roster. Cavan Sullivan has scored seven goals, including six in the Union’s last six matches, while his older brother Quinn has one since returning from a season-ending ACL tear last season.
The number of goals the Union have allowed since their second-half return in MLS play. By comparison, during their slump before the World Cup break, the Union allowed 30 goals. Nestled within that are four shutouts, including 5-0 outbursts against FC Cincinnati (Sept. 9) and four days later on the road against San Diego FC.
Union captain Alejandro Bedoya has been impactful on and off the field. Courtesy / Union
16
Union captain Alejandro Bedoya’s appearances this season. Bedoya, 39, might be considered the elder statesman on the roster, but his work rate, particularly when he enters in the second half, has been a key contributor to the team’s second-half surge. He owns a 65% accurate passer rating and has three assists in league play. However, Richter and several players on the squad suggest the leadership Bedoya brings is the real talent of this chapter of his 11-year career in Philadelphia.
Video: Philly’s Cavan Sullivan reacts to being called up to U.S. men’s national team.
18
The average age of the three Union players who were called into the senior U.S. men’s national team ahead of four matches for the Americans during the FIFA window. Defenders Frankie Westfield (20) and Neil Pierre (18), and midfielder Cavan Sullivan (16) make up the trio who, along with midfielder Danley Jean Jacques (26, Haiti) and goalkeeper Andre Blake (35, Jamaica), will miss time with the team due to international duty.
Frankie Westfield is one of three current Union players in camp for the U.S. men’s national team ahead of four matches. Jonathan Tannenwald
29
The number of points the Union have amassed in this second half of the season. The club limped into the break with a 1-10-4 (seven points) record. Since the break, the Union are 9-0-2 in MLS play.
30
The number of MLS goals the Union have scored since the restart of the season. In total, the club has scored 50 goals in league play, meaning that 60% have come since July 22 when the Union took home a 3-1 win against Red Bull New York at home.
2,321
The number of minutes played by defender Nathan Harriel, who is the only player to have started every league match for the team. Harriel, who has been a bona fide presence at outside back, ranks third in MLS for the most minutes by a player who isn’t a goalkeeper.
The basement on Almond Street didn’t have much, but it had one of those old couches that every basement needs.
“The one that you know is comfy just by looking at it,” Quinn Sullivan said.
The Bridesburg basement, half of which was unfinished, became a clubhouse for the four Sullivan brothers. The miniature soccer net was all Quinn, Declan, Ronan, and Cavan needed to fill an afternoon. Cavan, the youngest of the four, did whatever he could to keep up as he played in a diaper and learned to volley a ball with both feet when he was just 18 months.
It was impossible to know that the seeds of Cavan’s career — perhaps the most promising in the history of American soccer — were being planted on Almond Street where Brendan and Heike Sullivan never told their sons that there was “no ball in the house.”
The boys caromed soccer balls off the living room radiator, played football in the kitchen, broke light bulbs in the basement, and got into some scraps. The parents were just letting their boys play, their mom said.
But there was something different about the toddler who knew how to catch a football.
“Like you throw it at him and he has his hands up,” Brendan said. “He’s not catching with his chest. He’s catching it with his hands. He caught a baseball with his glove. So you know but you don’t know the extent to how different it is.”
The soccer world soon saw what the Sullivans saw in their basement.
Cavan was deemed a prodigy when he was 6 years old and European powers scouted him before he was a teen. He signed his Philadelphia Union contract when he was 14, giving him the chance to play professionally alongside Quinn. He has an agreement to join England’s Manchester City next year when he turns 18, and is training this week for the first time with the senior U.S. men’s national team.
Even more? He’s a safe bet to play for the U.S. in the 2028 Olympics and then the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
The kid from Bridesburg could be the future of American soccer. It started on Almond Street.
“My dad would be in the net and we would just shoot on him all day, whenever we got the chance,” Cavan said of that old basement. “You fall in love with the game in moments like that.”
The Union’s Quinn Sullivan has words with Miami’s Lionel Messi during their match on Aug. 19 at Subaru Park.Steven M. Falk / For The Inquirer
No fear
It happened so fast that the Sullivans couldn’t really tell what happened from their seats at Subaru Park. Did Cavan get punched? Did Quinn just go nose-to-nose with Lionel Messi?
Then they watched the replay of the fracas between the Union and Inter Miami, a skirmish that felt like the ones the parents — who met as college soccer players at Penn — used to break up in the backyard.
A Miami player tried to step over a fallen Quinn — “You got the wrong guy, buddy,” his dad said — before Quinn hooked his leg and took him to the ground like a UFC fighter.
A swarm of Miami players gathered around Quinn as Cavan sprinted across the field like his brother’s tag-team partner. Quinn used to spend hours on his computer cutting up Cavan’s game tapes and posting the highlights to YouTube. That was support, Quinn said. So of course the little brother had his back last month.
“It’s like ‘You better go in,’” said 18-year-old Ronan, who plays at St. Joe’s with his twin brother, Declan. “He would’ve gotten s— if he didn’t. It’s a lot about where we came from. That’s Northeast Philly right there.”
Cavan squared up against a 25-year-old foe who tried to throw a punch at the 16-year-old boy. Both players were sent off and Messi then slapped Sullivan in the head, appearing to reprimand him for taking down the Miami player. Quinn Sullivan, who grew up idolizing Messi, charged his hero and pushed his face against his.
“I was raised in Philly and you don’t take disrespect,” Quinn, 22, said. “It might sound corny to some people or cliche, but I didn’t like him touching my face and I’m not going to be the guy who falls down. I had to make sure he knew that I didn’t think it was cool.”
The Union’s Quinn Sullivan wrestles with Miami’s Ian Fray on Aug. 19 at Subaru Park.Steven M. Falk / For The Inquirer
It was Cavan’s footwork, speed, and skill that drew the world’s attention. But it is his fearlessness — the mentality that allowed a 16-year-old to run last month toward the fire — that sets him apart.
“There’s a little bit of a flair, a confidence, an arrogance,” said Taylor Twellman, the former U.S. player who now broadcasts MLS games on Apple TV. “But there’s also a real urgency to win, to compete. For a 16-year-old kid, I can see that there’s a little bit of a dog in him. You know what I mean?”
And it’s all about where he’s from. His grandfather, Larry, grew up in Kensington and played at North Catholic. His dad grew up in Juniata Park and played at St. Joe’s Prep. His uncle John Albright played at Frankford and his cousin Chris Albright went from Northeast Philly to the World Cup. Those guys were as tough as the cinders they often played on and they passed that grit down like an heirloom.
For generations, soccer was the sport in the Northeast Philly neighborhoods. And there was only one way to play.
Cavan always played two years ahead of his age group, which teamed him with the twins and allowed his parents to be at just two games every weekend instead of three. He held his own, just like he did in the basement.
Eventually, they figured, his age would catch up to him. It never happened, which is what allowed YSC Academy — the school connected to the Union Youth Academy — to see if Cavan could skip two grades and start seventh grade with his brothers. He handled that, too.
“We never really thought of him as younger,” Declan, 18, said. “I feel like because he was always in our circle, hanging with our friends, he was always like our age in our head. He’s mature for his age and part of that is because he was always around kids who were older than him.”
The Union’s Cavan (left) and Quinn Sullivan celebrate Quinn’s goal on Sept. 9 at Subaru Park.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Brendan coached Cavan’s first team at Lighthouse, which the son described as a group of “aggressive and eager kids” who just went out and played. They didn’t have private training but Cavan had a dad who was committed to teaching them the things he learned from his dad.
Brendan drilled his sons in Ocean City, often turning two-hour sessions into four-hour slogs while Heike waited to go to the beach. They played games their dad invented like “Gauntlet” and “Thirty Seconds of Hell” and debate what was worse: the burning of your quad muscles or the ringing in your ears from the fiery coach.
Cavan Sullivan, front, with his brothers Declan, Quinn, and Ronan and their father Brendan at Newt’s Field in Fishtown.Heike Sullivan
They practiced more on the beach and the boys remember being the last ones to leave travel tournaments while their dad gave instruction long after the final whistle. He was intense, but the boys learned to love it. Quinn said his dad always told his sons he loved them, even when they fell short. He taught his sons to play hard.
And that’s why the brothers from Almond Street weren’t afraid of Messi and Co.
“I love that Quinn didn’t back down in the face of Messi, a guy he has tremendous respect for,” Brendan said. “But you’re still just a dude on the field, same as me. We laced our boots up the same way today. I’m not backing down.
“The old saying goes, ‘If you’re looking for a fight from someone from Philadelphia, you’re more than likely going to get it.’ That’s how we’re raised here. You don’t back down. Stand your ground.”
The spotlight on Cavan Sullivan has become in recent months as bright as his bleach blonde hair.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
Bleached super star
Cavan left Sunday for Atlanta, where he’s training for the first time with the U.S. team and beginning a journey that could make him the star of the next World Cup. He’ll likely earn his first national team appearance before returning to the Union.
But before he boarded his flight, Cavan needed to get his hair right. So his mom, who used to bleach her husband’s hair in the 1990s when he played pro soccer in New York, got to work.
“I looked like a Duracell battery,” Brendan said as his old hair was more copper than blonde. “Cavan gets the extra love.”
Cavan looks the part of a star with his bleached hair, eyebrow slit, and gold chains. He breezes through interviews like he beats defenders as no question seems to trip him up. He’s been in modeling campaigns for non-soccer brands, was photographed this summer by Annie Leibovitz, and has more than 400,000 followers on Instagram.
He plays the game like a showman and often tops goals with choreographed celebrations like the time he threw chalk in the air as an homage to LeBron James.
“That’s him,” said Union teammate Frankie Westfield, who grew up in Morrell Park and is with Cavan with the U.S. team. “That’s how he performs. Even in the locker room and in training, he’s dancing around. I don’t want to say he doesn’t care because he cares so much, but I think just playing loose and free makes him what he is. He brings a whole new vibe.”
Cavan has the makings to be more than just a soccer star.
Video: Philly’s Cavan Sullivan reacts to being called up to U.S. men’s national team.
The spotlight on Cavan has become in recent months as bright as his hair. But the kid seems comfortable in it, managing the attention with ease despite being just 16.
“I think I just understand that I haven’t really done anything yet,” he said. “There hasn’t been anything major that I’ve done. I’m still trying to prove myself and make my mark on the city and on the club. I always want more. I always want to be the best. When you focus on it that way, it’s natural to just avoid all the other stuff.”
Quinn remembers driving Cavan home from their Union practice and how the younger brother would be breaking down footage from the session and sending clips to his dad for feedback. He’s always thinking about the game.
He doesn’t count his social media likes or chase clout and even remarked to his brother how he couldn’t get his latest ridiculous goal — a beautiful backheeled tip — off his timeline.
Quinn and Cavan Sullivan pose for a photo after a Union victory over New York City FC last season.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
“I was like ‘Dude, you have to hit the not interested button,’” Quinn said. “But he deals with it well. It comes with the game. It comes with being the type of player he is.”
Perhaps Cavan’s ability to shrug at attention goes to how his parents treated him and his brothers. They talked to their kids about the games on the way home and then treated them like kids when they walked in the front door.
Cavan could be playing next year in Europe, but he still has chores at home. And the Sullivans never posted — “I did a couple times,” Heike admitted — about their children on social media.
“Why would you?” Brendan said. “There’s no need to talk about how you won a tournament or had a hat trick. You don’t brag about anything. This is his normal. It’s not normal to us, but he looks at it as his normal. So it’s weird for him if this is his normal. But then again, we don’t talk a whole lot about it. We never gave him media practice. He just knows, ‘Don’t sound like a jerk.’”
Cavan never played the game for attention or accolades. He became a child star, but he wasn’t groomed for it. His parents declined interviews over the years and other media projects.
The Sullivans knew they had a phenom, but they didn’t publicize him, not even on Facebook. They treated him like a kid, his mom said, because he was a kid. It was that simple.
“This wasn’t something we were seeking out,” Heike said. “And maybe that attitude prepared him to not make a big deal out of it.”
Older brother Quinn (left) has Cavan Sullivan’s back on and off the pitch.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Shaped by Philly
The Sullivans left Almond Street in 2018 for Norristown and the allure of a driveway, a backyard, and extra bedrooms. There’s not much to complain about. But they still miss things about the old neighborhood.
There was a corner store where a dollar was enough to score a handful of candy. Brendan can still taste the polish kielbasa and his sons remember the fear they felt as a 4-year-old walking alone around the corner to their grandparents and the pride of making it there safely. There was Wiffle ball and basketball with the neighbors, riding bikes through the cemetery, and playing for hours on the sidewalk.
Philadelphia’s soccer scene was born in neighborhoods like Bridesburg, where European immigrants brought the game decades ago when they came to work in factories along the Delaware River. Rowhouses — just like the one on Almond Street — produced pioneers like Walter Bahr and Benny McLaughlin. The Northeast is where Chris Albright and Bobby Convey, teammates on the 2006 U.S. World Cup squad, grew up. The cinder fields was where Don D’Ambra and Dave MacWilliams made their mark.
The same neighborhood that shaped Sullivan is what powered Philadelphia soccer for generations. He’s only 16 years old and he soon could be the face of a sport. But he was not an overnight sensation. Cavan’s emergence was generations in the making. Just the ones who came before him, he’s a kid from the neighborhood.
The Sullivans left Bridesburg years ago. The basement now belongs to someone else. But the memories? They’ll always belong to the four brothers.
“Northeast Philly sort of shaped me in a way,” Cavan said. “It was just a great place to be.”
FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — When Auston Trusty turned pro with the Union a decade ago, the club’s youth academy was just starting to find its footing.
Now everyone knows about it, and the waves of players it has produced for the club and the U.S. national team. Trusty knows better than most, as the Media native is on the academy’s board.
But the scale of how far things have come in less than a decade has hit especially hard this week. The 28-year-old is sharing the field with the newest Union youngsters to break through: Cavan Sullivan, Neil Pierre, and Frankie Westfield.
“Yeah, it’s crazy. I still think of myself as the young kid from Philadelphia, but now these guys are,” Trusty told The Inquirer on Thursday in an interview at U.S. Soccer’s national training center, before the team headed to Orlando to prepare for Saturday’s game against Peru (4:30 p.m., TNT, Telemundo 62).
Cavan Sullivan (second from left) on the ball in front of Auston Trusty during a drill at Thursday’s practice.Jonathan Tannenwald
“The way they look at me, they all know my history,” he said. “They all know where I came from, how I came from it, and I’ve been that person they’ve been trying to aspire to be. I’m really appreciative, I’m really grateful, and it’s a blessing that I’m able to be that person for them.”
It feels long ago, at least in soccer terms, that Trusty turned down a scholarship offer to the University of North Carolina in the summer of 2016. He signed with the Union just days before he’d have headed to Chapel Hill. Back then, such a move was seen as unusual.
“College, at the time, was probably the smarter move to other people,” he recalled. “To me, signing pro, I was taking a risk for myself. So it kind of opened that pathway for all these kids to come after me, and it’s pretty cool.”
A year after Trusty’s move, Mark McKenzie left Wake Forest following his freshman season, and Brenden Aaronson backed out of a verbal commitment to Indiana.
Auston Trusty (left) and Mark McKenzie together during their playing days with the Union.
The tide had turned, and there was no going back. By the time Frankie Westfield turned pro in 2024 instead of going to Penn State, no one batted an eye.
On Thursday, Trusty and Westfield had lunch together after teaming up in one of the morning’s training drills.
“From what I’ve known from him, and from what I’ve heard, he’s a great player [with a] great mindset,” Trusty said. “Him, along with the other players from [the] Union, it’s really cool to see how far they’ve come, together and individually, and also their mindsets. … It’s their first time, so maybe they’d be hesitant, but they have great mindsets, and that’s what I really want to see.”
It was obvious to ask about Pierre, a fellow centerback with so much potential. Trusty hadn’t talked with him much yet as of Thursday, mainly due to travel delays coming over from his club home at Celtic in Glasgow, Scotland. But Trusty has seen highlights, including of Pierre’s four goals for the Union this year, and is happy to have another Union centerback with the national team.
Neil Pierre (third from right) is always easy to spot in a crowd thanks to his 6-foot-6 frame.Jonathan Tannenwald
“He seems [like] a really good guy, seems good as a person, as a player, seems like he has a lot of talent,” Trusty said. “Obviously, his physical attributes — he’s really tall, and I think a lot of times people can focus on physical attributes. I’m really excited to see how he is on the ball, how he is as a player.”
And of course, there’s Sullivan. Trusty has known the 16-year-old and his family for a while, so he hasn’t just seen the player through Union games.
“He’s a humble kid, and he’s a grinder,” Trusty said. “He has that Philadelphia Union mindset where you know you don’t take it for granted, you go out there and grind, and you make the most of it. But he’s a humble kid, and he comes from a good family as well.”
It will strike some people that Trusty focused on Sullivan’s humility. To outsiders, the talk is of cockiness and a hype train. But Trusty knows the difference between that and the right kind of confidence.
Cavan Sullivan (right) cracking a smile at the start of Thursday’s practice.Jonathan Tannenwald
“You see him off the pitch, see how he approaches a game, how he starts a game, how he approaches his transactions with teammates and coaches, and the game itself with his own play,” he said. “But during it, if someone’s going to do stepovers, someone’s scoring goals, and they’re celebrating, or if they show confidence on the pitch, that is exactly what you want to see. I don’t want an attacker, or any player, on the pitch that’s not confident.”
Given that, he concluded: “So if someone’s feeling themselves, someone’s confident in their ability and backs themselves, all power to him.”
Now the time has come for Sullivan and the other newcomers to make their first marks at a new level.
“It’s for the more veteran, more established players to lead the young guys, and guys who could possibly get their first caps, to make sure they know what this team’s about,” Trusty said. “When you wear this crest, you’re not just representing yourself. You’re representing your teammates, your coaches, but everyone that’s ever believed in you, and an entire nation that’s behind you. So it really means a lot.”
