"Just my opinion" — McKennie responds to Donovan criticism of USMNT stars
Star players such as Christian Pulisic, Sergiño Dest, Antonee Robinson, Timothy Weah, and McKennie will all be absent from the squad for the tournament this June.
Advertisement
'This is what it means to represent your country," Donovan said over the weekend. "If you don't want to take it seriously as a professional soccer player and someone who gets the opportunity to wear the jersey, then don't come in."
While the players are missing for a variety of reasons, including injury or Club World Cup campaigns, Weston McKennie felt Donovan's comments were wide of the mark.
'Obviously, none of us take for granted playing for the national team. None of us want to lose games," McKennie said.
'All of us want to compete. And for me, it's a little bit, I won't say sad, but as a former national team player, I think as a national team player pool – previous, present – I think it's more about trying to build or even say something like that to a person directly rather than putting it out there.'
Advertisement
Most notably, McKennie pointed out that past USMNT sides have failed to show up in big moments, specifically in 2017 when the Stars and Stripes failed to qualify for the World Cup in Russia.
'That's just my opinion because we've all been through those moments, even when comments about us losing the Nations League were made by many players from before, but they've had the same thing on a bigger stage with not qualifying for the World Cup.'
The United States will kick off their Gold Cup campaign on June 15 against Trinidad and Tobago.
📸 Hector Vivas - 2024 Getty Images
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
MLB trade deadline: Reliever swaps teams mid-doubleheader
Yahoo Sports AM is our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it every weekday morning. 🚨 Headlines 🏈 Gunman targeted NFL: The gunman who killed four people in Manhattan on Monday was targeting the NFL's headquarters, which the league has now temporarily closed. Police reportedly found a note on the gunman's body that claimed he had CTE and wanted his brain studied. ⚾️ Injuries galore: All-Stars Byron Buxton, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Jacob Wilson all landed on the injured list yesterday. Star outfielders Juan Soto and Jackson Chourio both got pulled from their games with injuries, too. ⚽️ Müller to Vancouver: German legend Thomas Müller is joining the Vancouver Whitecaps after spending the last 25 years with Bayern Munich, where the 35-year-old won a Bundesliga-record 13 titles and scored 227 goals. 🍿 Sequel scores big: "Happy Gilmore 2" generated 46.7 million views in three days, making it the biggest U.S. opening weekend ever for a Netflix film. 🏈 Hendrickson ends holdout: Four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Trey Hendrickson will report to Bengals camp today despite still seeking a long-term deal. And with that, the NFL's final holdout has come to an end. ⚾️ Trading places: Reliever swaps teams mid-matchup Seranthony Domínguez woke up on Tuesday as an Oriole and suited up for their day game against the Blue Jays. He went to bed as a Blue Jay, having just pitched against… the Orioles. Talk about a whirlwind. Trading places: Domínguez was in the bullpen for Baltimore's 16-4 win in the opener … swapped clubhouses after getting traded … then pitched an inning of relief for the Blue Jays in the nightcap, striking out two players he'd called teammates hours earlier in a 3-2 Toronto loss. "After the first game, I was sitting there hanging out with the guys when they told me, 'Hey [you got] traded, go to the next dugout,'" said the veteran reliever. Domínguez had an upside down "8" on his uniform because of how quickly they had to get him his Blue Jays gear. I'm willing to cut the equipment manager some slack. What are the odds? Juaron Watts-Brown, the returning prospect in the trade, also switched clubhouses on Tuesday. Coincidentally, his former team, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays Double-A), were playing his new team, the Chesapeake Baysox (Orioles Double-A). Trade deadline tracker: Latest news and updates (Yahoo Sports) Related baseball history: On May 30, 1922, the Cardinals and Cubs swapped outfielders in the middle of a doubleheader 🥇 Ledecky's reign continues Katie Ledecky continued her reign as the queen of the 1500m freestyle on Tuesday in Singapore, winning gold with the fifth-fastest time ever (15:26.44) for a historic 28th world championship medal. Chasing Phelps: Those 28 medals (22 gold, 5 silver, 1 bronze) broke a tie with fellow American Ryan Lochte for the second-most by any swimmer. Only Michael Phelps, with 33, has more. Queen of the 1500: Six of those medals have come in the 1500, a race Ledecky hasn't lost since she was in junior high school 15 years ago. She's held the world record since 2013 and owns the 11 fastest times ever — though that number was much higher before Tuesday. Italy's Simona Quadarella swam the race of her life to earn silver, finishing "just" five seconds behind Ledecky at 15:31.79, the 12th-fastest time ever. Before Tuesday's final, Ledecky owned the 24 fastest times ever. Now, she'll have to settle for 25 of the 26 fastest. Coming up: Ledecky, 28, has two more events this week, beginning with tomorrow's 4x200 free relay. Then it's the main event — perhaps of the entire world championships — when she squares off against 18-year-old Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh in the 800m free. ⚾️ Raleigh eyes rare catcher MVP Cal Raleigh's dream season has leveled up yet again, as the Mariners' catcher moved ahead of an injured Aaron Judge this week as the AL MVP favorite. Head-to-head: Seattle's catcher and New York's captain are head-and-shoulders above the rest of the league, leading or ranking second in just about every major statistical category. Raleigh: 41 HR (leads MLB), 87 RBI (leads MLB), 71 R (2nd in AL), 64 BB (3rd in AL), 12 SB (leads catchers), .260/.368/.613 (.981 OPS is 2nd in AL) and 5.2 WAR (3rd in AL). Judge: 37 HR (2nd in AL), 85 RBI (2nd in AL), 90 R (leads AL), 73 BB (leads AL), .342/.449/.711 (1.160 OPS leads MLB) and 6.7 WAR (leads MLB). Wild stat: "Big Dumper" is on pace for 62 long balls, which wouldn't merely shatter the record for a catcher (48 by Salvador Perez) — it would also tie Judge's AL record set back in 2022. Exclusive club: If Raleigh's sensational season does indeed end with an MVP, it will be an exceedingly rare victory: 12 catchers have combined to win just 18 of the 210 MVP awards ever handed out,* per Yogi Berra (1951, 1954, 1955) Roy Campanella (1951, 1953, 1955) Johnny Bench (1970, 1972) Mickey Cochrane (1928, 1934) Bob O'Farrell, Cardinals (1926) Gabby Hartnett, Cubs (1935) Ernie Lombardi, Reds (1938) Elston Howard, Yankees (1963) Thurman Munson (1976) Iván "Pudge" Rodríguez (1999) Joe Mauer (2009) Buster Posey (2012) *The first modern MVP was awarded by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in 1931, but tally also includes earlier versions of the award. 📊 By the numbers 🎾 16 teams The USTA confirmed 14 of the 16 teams that will compete in the U.S. Open's new-look mixed doubles tournament, which will take place during qualifying week (Aug. 19-20) and feature a $1 million prize. The teams include 14 players ranked in the top 10 (eight men, six women), as well as seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams. ⛳️ 5 golfers Two-time Open Championship winner Pádraig Harrington won the Senior Open on Sunday in England, making him the fifth golfer to win both editions of the Open. The other four: Gary Player, Tom Watson, Darren Clarke and Bob Charles. ⚾️ 17 straight seasons Andrew McCutchen is the 11th player in MLB history to start a career with at least 17 consecutive 10-HR seasons, joining Hank Aaron (23 straight), Eddie Murray (20), Carl Yastrzemski (20), Barry Bonds (19), Albert Pujols (19), Frank Robinson (19), Harold Baines (18), Mickey Mantle (18), Jeff Kent (17) and Willie McCovey (17). 📺 Watchlist: Wednesday, July 30 🏀 Liberty at Lynx | 8pm ET, ESPN Two of the top three teams in our latest power rankings meet in a rematch of last year's WNBA Finals, where New York prevailed. The defending champs, who've dropped two straight and just lost Breanna Stewart to a leg injury, could really use a win. More to watch: ⚾️ MLB: Rays at Yankees (7pm, Prime) … Zack Littell (8-8, 3.72 ERA) vs. Will Warren (6-5, 4.82 ERA). ⚽️ Leagues Cup: Inter Miami vs. Atlas (7:30pm, Apple) … Opening game for Lionel Messi's squad. Today's full slate → 🏀 NBA trivia Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady is joining NBC as a studio analyst for the upcoming NBA season. Question: Can you name the seven teams McGrady played for during his NBA career? Hint: Five East, two West. Answer at the bottom. ⛳️ Unique, but effective! Philippe Gariépy shot a 1-under 71 on Monday at the PGA Championship of Canada while using an 18-inch putter, the shortest legal length allowed in golf. My man looks absolutely ridiculous and my back hurts just watching him. That said, my putting game is in shambles at the moment so I may have to try this. Trivia answer: Rockets (6 seasons), Magic (4), Raptors (3), Knicks (1), Pistons (1), Hawks (1), Spurs (1) We hope you enjoyed this edition of Yahoo Sports AM, our daily newsletter that keeps you up to date on all things sports. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Tennessee Titans' Brian Callahan talks Restrepo, other nuggets before Day 6
Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan met with the media before practice on Wednesday and broke down what he saw during the first day of padded practice and what to expect on Wednesday. One player he talked about at length was undrafted rookie wide receiver Xavier Restrepo, and his thoughts on the young receiver. 'There's something about him as a football player that you can't measure.' He said, 'He has a knack of finding space and getting open, and the ball seems to find him.' While many have already penciled Restrepo into the final 53-man roster, performances like this will do nothing but solidify his chances of making it. Coming in with a strong bond with Cam Ward helps, but Restrepo has continued to build a strong connection with all of the quarterbacks in camp. Callahan also touched on the offensive line play and was happy with the performance during drills. 'The offensive line is much more comfortable in their set and technique than last year. You see them more confident, the guys that have been here before.' The offensive line did a good job during 1-on-1 pass rush drills. From social media tracking of the reps, the offensive lineman won 29 of the 47 reps, with four ties thrown in. JC Latham and Peter Skoronski looked strong during the drills, but rookie edge Femi Oladejo struggled. While this could be viewed as a positive for the offense, considering the struggles the line had in 2024, the Titans' pass rush is one of the biggest question marks on the defense, making this a topic that must be monitored moving forward. Callahan was also excited to see how Cam Ward bounces back from an uneven performance during the first session in pads. 'I feel great about how he'll bounce back. That's sort of how he's wired.' Callahan said, 'I feel good about how he will respond today.' Struggles early in training camp are common for rookies, and the fact that Ward had an uneven day of work during the first padded practice should not cause panic. Callahan closed by giving a small injury update, noting that Blake Hance (calf) and Isaiah Raikes (undisclosed) will be sidelined on Wednesday. Darrell Baker Jr., who left practice early on Tuesday, was not mentioned and should be good to go. This article originally appeared on Titans Wire: Titans' Brian Callahan talks Restrepo, other nuggets before Day 6
Yahoo
3 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Buffalo Sabres home arena to remain KeyBank Center after reaching 10-year naming rights extension
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Sabres' home arena will continue being called the KeyBank Center after the two sides announced a 10-year naming rights extension on Wednesday. The new deal will kick in next year and run through 2035-36. The Cleveland-based bank has a large regional presence in Buffalo, and took over the downtown arena's naming rights after acquiring First Niagara Bank in 2016. As part of the extension, the bank's name will be featured on the Sabres' helmets for away games starting this season. The arena is undergoing a series of long-needed renovations since first opening in 1996. Last year, the Sabres replaced the roof and installed a new video scoreboard over center ice. The next series of renovations are expected to address upgrading the seats and fan amenities. The Sabres' control the building, which is also home to the three-time defending National Lacrosse League champion Bandits, and have placed an emphasis on adding more events since Pete Guelli took over as the team's chief operating officer last year. In November, the arena will host one of Paul McCartney's 20 North American tour stops, as well as host a pre-Olympic U.S. vs. Canada women's hockey Rivalry Series game. The Sabres, meanwhile, have been struggling on the ice with the team in the midst of an NHL-record 14-season playoff drought. ___ AP NHL: John Wawrow, The Associated Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
