The term friendly is used to define a match between two soccer teams when it’s not in an official competition.
Well, the U.S. men’s national team’s game against Paraguay on Saturday finished as anything but the other definition of friendly.
American defender Alex Freeman and Paraguay captain Diego Gómez sparked a bench-clearing brawl in the final minutes of the game at Subaru Park, home of MLS side Philadephia Union, that marred the 2-1 win for the USMNT.
Both Freeman and Goméz tried to pick up a ball that rolled out during second-half stoppage time, and they started scrapping as their teammates joined in. Paraguay’s Omar Alderete, who was not in the game, was given a red card and American midfielder Cristian Roldan a yellow card.
“That type of situation is very, very, very dangerous,” U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino told reporters after the game. “I don’t like this type of situation.”
But Pochettino added that the competitive spirit shown by his side, which included goals by Gio Reyna and Folarin Balogun, was encouraging.
“We needed this type of game and the next one is going to be the same, it’s going to be competitive,” Pochettino said. “These are not ‘friendly’ games. That is important.”
(Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)
USMNT keeper Matt Freese said he was happy with how the team stood up for Freeman despite the ugly scenes that unfolded.
“There were a few cheap shots thrown from their end, to be honest,” Freese told reporters after the game. “But that’s part of being a team. We’ll be sticking up for each other no matter the moment. That’s what it means.”
In the melee, Pochettino was knocked into the area where the touchline cameras were situated. But he was helped out by his Paraguayan counterpart, Gustavo Alfaro.
“I was trying to get in front of my players to avoid all the pushing and Mauricio tried to do the same, but he fell in front of the camera,” Alfaro told reporters after the game via a translator. “I saw him and tried to help him up.”
Pochettino thanked Alfaro for helping him out amid the chaos.
“I’m lucky that Alfaro saw me and helped me up,” Pochettino said afterward.
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