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With big talent and bigger ambitions, the 18-year-old Campbell has become American soccer's next one up

Cole Campbell is still adjusting to it all, and he's had to do so on the fly. Life has been one big change lately. All for the better, he'll tell you, but even good change can be challenging to navigate – especially as an 18-year-old.

The young dual-national is already thriving with a giant club, recently making his debuts for Borussia Dortmund in both the Bundesliga and the Champions League. He's playing at one of the world's best talent factories, which is a pretty damn good place to be, isn't it?

But the most unexpected adjustment of all? The attention. It can be overbearing. It hasn't quite reached that point for Campbell, but it has been … different. The social media posts, the Instagram highlight reels, the interviews, the hype – he sees it, he knows it, he feels it. Six months ago, he was a rising Iceland youth international. Now, he's something very different.

Very suddenly, Campbell has become American soccer's next one up.

Across all sports, the U.S. is a country continuously looking to anoint its next young star. We've seen it happen time and time again, including multiple times at Campbell's own club. Christian Pulisic and Gio Reyna have ridden their own hype machines straight to U.S. men's national team stardom, and the expectation is that Campbell is next. The eyes of American soccer are now fixed on a player with just 74 senior minutes for Borussia Dortmund.

"I've been training for such a long time with no one watching, and now that everyone is, I'm just confident in my abilities," Campbell tells GOAL. "Even if there are people watching, it doesn't really make me nervous. Obviously, it is so much different now, where I'm being followed and everything, but as far as that, I don't really feel much pressure. Obviously, I now have to perform and do well when I step on the field, but really, I just feel joy whenever I step on the field. I don't really feel too much pressure, I just enjoy it."

For several of his predecessors, such pressure has proven too much. For others, it's been what's sharpened them to push the game further than those that came before. Pulisic is the model case. Like Campbell, he arrived at Dortmund as a kid with big dreams and, in the years since, he's become a world-renowned star unlike any American before him.

Now, it's Campbell's turn. He's living with that pressure well, largely because Campbell expects even more from himself than others do. Everything that American soccer fans are dreaming of, well, he's dreaming of it, too.

"My goal was to debut in the Bundesliga and eventually the Champions League," he says. "Now that I've done that, I'm just trying to work hard and obviously earn more minutes throughout the rest of the season. That's my short-term goal. As far as long-term goals for my career, I want to win a Ballon d'Or. That's something that I want to do in my career. I want to win the Champions League and I want to win a World Cup as well. That's something that would be absolutely amazing and I think that, in the future, I think it's all possible."

Campbell is still new to this and, as good as he's been so far, it remains almost impossible to predict the future of an 18-year-old. He's still far from a finished product and he still has a lot of learning and growing to do before he reaches the expectations that those on the outside have thrust upon him, let alone the ones he's now putting on himself.

He's still adjusting, but Campbell truly believes anything is possible.

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  Beginnings at Dortmund

  It's easy to see why Dortmund made the move to sign Campbell from relative obscurity. Watch him for just a few seconds and you see it. There's a different skill level and, more importantly, a different speed to his game. He's been compared to Pulisic and Leroy Sane due to his ability to dart through defenses. He has the type of pace you can't teach, and the type of ruthlessness needed to make the most of it.

  Since arriving at Dortmund, Campbell has thrived at every level he's played at to earn his first-team place. He scored a brace in his U17 debut, adding four more in the following 10 games, too. He scored 10 while assisting 11 for the U19s in 2023. Campbell's rise may seem meteoric, but it's also been carefully crafted by the Dortmund system.

  "Cole is a very young and extremely exciting player, who took huge strides in the past year," Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl said of the American forward. "We see so much potential in him."

  Campbell's Dortmund move was announced in the summer of 2022. At the time, he'd made just two senior appearances for Icelandic side FH. He made two further appearances for Breidablik before heading to Germany. He wasn't signed for his resume or experiencd – he was signed for potential.

  Dortmund have moved him along slowly. He was called up to a January camp last season and has been in and around first-team training. It was in those moments that Campbell learned what it takes at that level, and just how much work he still had to put into get there.

  "I started training with the first team a few times last year," Campbell recalls, "and, to be honest, Marco Reus was just amazing. His touch on the ball and everything, there were so many little things that he did. He's just an amazing player, and that made me like, 'Wow, OK'. I remember we were playing four against four, and he told me to just run. There were three players standing there, and I was like, 'How's he going to get me the ball?' He put it through all of their legs. That's crazy.

  "When I was younger and coming up, you see the quality and what is expected. Every pass has to be perfect, every touch, everything."

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  Big adjustments

  Reus provided that on-field lesson. There were also the off-field ones. Campbell moved to Dortmund at just 16. There were things he had to learn, about himself and his career. He was thrust into a new environment in a new country with a new language.

  That led to moments of solitude in which Campbell says he leaned on his faith to figure things out.

  "Football is not all easy," he says. "You see it from the outside world and it looks like everything's just a smooth road, but my path was definitely not that way. It was ups and downs, and it was definitely very difficult at times. Jesus has been with me and carried me through those hard times, and that's something that is a part of me that I want everyone to know."

  His German's getting better, too. That'll help as he continues to adjust to life at Dortmund.

  "I can understand everything [in training] now," he adds with a smile. "That was the most important thing. All the trainings were in German, everything, and I didn't understand a word. It was difficult, but after about eight to nine months, I started to understand what they were saying, and now I can speak pretty well, too."

  Heading into the 2024 season, Campbell's chance was coming. And it arrived in a big way.

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  The breakthrough

  By the time a player hears that Champions League anthem in person for the first time, they've likely heard it a million times in their dreams. Campbell was no different. And it came with a sense of accomplishment.

  Campbell heard that anthem for the first time on Oct. 22 ahead of Dortmund's clash with Real Madrid, a match in which he remained an unused substitute. He made his Bundesliga debut four days later against Augsburg, thrown in to help Dortmund chase down what ended as a 2-1 defeat.

  “We want to get the young players as close to the team as possible, because they are the future of the club," Dortmund boss Nuri Sahin said of Campbell after that match. "Of course, there are more ideal scenarios than making your debut in Augsburg when you're behind."

  His Champions League debut came a few days later as he came on for the final 13 minutes in Dortmund's 1-0 win over Sturm Graz. It was during those anthems that Campbell took a moment to sit back and think about it all.

  "It made me realize how far have I've come from when I was just a little kid playing and dreaming about this moment, you know? It was just a surreal moment," Campbell says. "It doesn't feel real. You're like, 'Wow, I'm here, I'm actually in a Champions League game.' "

  In the month or so since, Campbell has hovered around the Dortmund first team while also thriving for the club's second. After sitting on the bench in this past weekend's 4-0 win over Freiburg, he went on to score one day later in Dortmund II's win over Erzgebirge Aue in the third division.

  "Coming in [to the first team], I was just feeling mostly just excited to come in, " he said. "I know I just have to work hard and do my best with what I'm given."

  Campbell finds himself fighting for more minutes in the Borussia Dortmund attack, and he'll now be fighting against another American star.

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  Following in footsteps

  Dortmund's reputation as one of the game's best at developing talent is well-earned. Erling Haaland, Jude Bellingham and Robert Lewandowski all arrived and reached superstar status at BVB. So, too, did Pulisic, who emerged as the first in what is now a legacy of American stars.

  "As far as when I was deciding which club I should go to," Campbell says, "obviously with the other players who have made it through, you see that there's a path through the academy to the first team, and that was a big thing for me. They really prepare you, not just what you can do, but also mentally, and that's something that has helped me a lot."

  That preparation helps reduce the pressure, and keeps Campbell calm. Well, mostly.

  "It's just preparing and not being too nervous," he says. "It's always good to have a little bit of excitement but if you're too nervous, you won't perform at your best, best potential. The mental side of things was something that I didn't have before I came here, and when I came here, that was a big switch. It took me some time to get used to everything, but in the end, the mental aspect, that's helped me a lot with getting me to where I am today."

  With his ascension to the Dortmund first team, Campbell has joined up with another American in Gio Reyna, who is now looking to rebuild his own career after some difficult moments. Just 22, Reyna is now the elder American at the club compared to Campbell. Due to Reyna's recent injury woes, the two haven't gotten to spend much time on the pitch together, but Campbell does see the USMNT midfielder as a role model.

  "He's a great guy, Campbell said. "I've talked to him every now and then. Obviously, it really sucks that he's been injured these last last few months, but I've talked to him and he's helped me. It's just here and there, but I'm glad that I also have another American on the team that I can talk with."

  They'll have plenty more to talk about going forward, as Campbell looks to carve out his own USMNT career.

Arsenal could now accept a loan bid for one £120,000-per-week player, after he made one thing crystal clear to club chiefs behind the scenes.

Players who could be sold by Arsenal before August 30

Summer deadline day is in just over a month's time, and as Edu Gaspar's recruitment team look to add more fresh faces, there is also the possibility of other players leaving Arsenal – either on loan or permanently.

"Special" Arsenal player agrees to leave as West Ham chase quick deal

They want it done this week.

By
Emilio Galantini

Jul 18, 2024

Two notable senior players in Mohamed Elneny and Cedric Soares departed London Colney when their contracts expired on June 30, while both Albert Sambi Lokonga and Nuno Tavares sealed loan moves elsewhere.

Tavares joined Lazio on an initial season-loan, which includes a mandatory buy-clause set at £7.5 million. The Portuguese, with his permanent transfer a formality at the end of next season, put pen to paper on a five-year deal with Marco Baroni's side.

Lokonga was persuaded to join Sevilla on a temporary deal by former Leeds United director Victor Orta, and that deal also includes a rumoured buy-option set at around £10 million.

“I had some conversations with Victor,” said Lokonga on joining Sevilla.

“We had the opportunity to talk a long time ago and today it finally came true. For me the most convincing thing is the opportunity to return to Europe and win again. I want to be part of the team, be part of the history of the club and participate in everything I can."

Mikel Arteta is very likely to see a few other interesting names part company, which could include the likes of Thomas Partey, Aaron Ramsdale, Kieran Tierney, Reiss Nelson, Eddie Nkeitah and Emile Smith Rowe.

All the aforementioned players have been linked with moves away, but one player they're struggling to find a buyer for is £120,000-per-week second-choice keeper Ramsdale.

Arsenal may now accept loan bid for Ramsdale after clear message

The England international lost his place to David Raya last season, and the 25-year-old has made it clear to club chiefs that he won't be sitting on the bench all season again.

That is according to HITC, who also say Arsenal could now accept a loan bid for Ramsdale, due to the difficulty in finding permanent suitors. The north Londoners value him at around £40 million, and it is believed clubs are reluctant to pay such a sum for Ramsdale.

In any case, the former Bournemouth keeper is tipped to inevitably leave this summer, but a lot will depend on just how far sides are willing to go for him.

"It’s a matter of when Ramsdale leaves, not if," said reliable journalist Charles Watts. “The key thing for Arsenal is getting value for money. I saw an initial fee of £15 million mentioned in reports last week and that is quite frankly ridiculous. Arsenal signed Ramsdale for nearly £30m two years ago and he has developed into a far better keeper since then.

“He’s still young, he’s homegrown, an established England international and has a long-term contract. Yes, interested clubs will know that Arsenal’s stance in any negotiations will be weakened somewhat given he is now clearly behind David Raya in the pecking order, but that shouldn’t mean the club should basically give him away."

The allrounder is on the verge of completing his mandatory isolation but may or may not be able to fly out with the rest of the ODI squad members

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jan-2022Washington Sundar, the India allrounder, has tested positive for Covid-19 and is now a doubt for the three-match ODI series against South Africa starting January 19. ESPNcricinfo understands that Washington tested positive last week and is on the verge of finishing the required week-long isolation. As it stands, the BCCI is trying to figure out whether Washington can be allowed to join the rest of the ODI players, who fly out this week to South Africa.Washington is currently in Bengaluru, where he was training at the National Cricket Academy with other Indian ODI specialists. It is learnt that all the other South Africa-bound ODI players have returned negative tests and are ready to travel.It was back in March 2021 that Washington last turned out for India, in a T20I against England in Ahmedabad, and he had been sidelined by injury after that. Most recently, he performed well in the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament, scoring 148 runs in eight matches and also picking up 16 wickets, including a best of 5 for 48, as his team, Tamil Nadu, reached the final.

Arsenal defender Gabriel has been criticised by Freddie Ljungberg for mocking Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres by copying his celebration.

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• Gabriel copied Gyokeres celebration after scoring
• Defender criticised for mocking Sporting CP star
• Ljungberg said centre-back was 'disrespectful'

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Brazilian scored as Arsenal beat Sporting 5-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday and proceeded to copy the striker's goal celebration in a reported act of revenge for an incident that occurred in the 2022-23 season.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  While the Swedish striker did not seem bothered by the centre-back's actions, his compatriot, ex-Gunners star Ljungberg, believes it was a display of disrespect from Gabriel.

• WHAT LJUNGBERG SAID

  "I’m not a fan of it. Of course, he must have had a lot of talk about playing against Gyokeres and whether he would be able to do it," Ljungberg said on . "Then his point in showing that he can handle it is quite simple. But I think it’s a bit disrespectful. Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I don’t think it’s necessary. I think someone else has that target gesture, leave it alone. I don’t like to see it."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR ARSENAL?

  Gabriel has now scored three goals in all competitions for Arsenal this season and will be aiming to help his team to another win when they meet West Ham in the Premier League at the weekend.

In Bangalore, the visitors showed pluck and glimpses of the skills in their possession. Now, they must sustain their desire to do well in Test cricket

Andrew Alderson04-Sep-2012Five losses out of the last seven Tests makes poor reading for New Zealand, but there remains a feeling of respite in the aftermath of the Bangalore defeat. Despite a winning margin of five wickets, with Indian partnerships of 77 and 96 in the final innings, there was a sense of fight in the New Zealand ranks; something the first Test shambles lacked.The Hyderabad loss left a taste of insipid apathy; the Bangalore loss reinvigorated the Test appetite. Losing in a decent contest earns respect. New Zealand demonstrated pluck through the batting of captain Ross Taylor, the bowling of a youthful pace attack and the guile of offspinner Jeetan Patel. Even at 32, Patel showed he is an alternative coming out from Daniel Vettori’s shadow. In the second innings, Patel was treated lightly by Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina before bowling them, while Cheteshwar Pujara was hesitant before flicking a catch. Patel deserved his three wickets in challenging circumstances.Unlike December’s victory over Australia, New Zealand could not drag the Test their way. In that match in Hobart – also minus Vettori – they were assisted by a strip with bite. Bangalore provided more of a contest for bat and ball, where the will of India captain MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli proved unbreakable.Yet, until the last few balls, the pair had to work hard. The contest made for an absorbing evening’s viewing in New Zealand. Fans could afford to shelve channel-surfing contingency plans.Ross Taylor’s first-innings century and aggressive captaincy – placing a regular three slips in the cordon for Southee and a short leg and silly point for Patel in the fourth innings – showed a maturity and a quiet fury to propel his team into a better era. He was rewarded with tight bowling for moderate periods. Taylor backed his hunches; like refusing Patel the right to put a man back after Sehwag blasted him for a six over long-off. Sehwag was bowled three balls later.Sadly for New Zealand, Taylor was given little top order batting support in the first innings as he eased to his seventh test century. Fifty to 100 more runs could have taken New Zealand out of danger. Likewise, in the second innings, no New Zealand batsman could fully dominate the spinners, with seven batsmen scoring between 22 and 41. The hosts faced a manageable 261 to haul in, despite it being a record fourth-innings chase on that ground.

The Hyderabad loss left a taste of insipid apathy; the Bangalore loss reinvigorated the Test appetite. Losing in a decent contest earns respect

Tim Southee, backed by like-minded aggression from Trent Boult and Doug Bracewell, produced a gifted spell to knock India back. His 7 for 64 that places him sixth on the list of all-time best New Zealand bowling performances. His ability to trouble India’s line-up by moving the ball to and fro was a credit to his mental aptitude after he earned inclusion at the expense of veteran Chris Martin.Inspirational moments peppered the fielding performance too, like Daniel Flynn scampering crab-like from short leg to take a one-handed catch off the in-form Pujara.Hopefully, though, New Zealand fans can resist reverting to apologist-speak like “rebuilding” and “moving forward” to describe the current team. Those excuses tire quickly in an era where there is more exposure to the international game than ever before from age-group level up. There is plenty of talent but more consistency is required. On the bowling front the India batsmen worked too many loose balls to the boundary with their wrists or “on-the-up” limited-overs style. The batting top order remains more miss than hit with porous defence.Taylor said afterwards they were disappointed with how they played in Hyderabad and wanted to show some fight and courage. They did so, but the onus is now on the players to avoid losing that desire to apply themselves in the longer form. For several of the team, patience is about to be replaced with premeditation at the World Twenty20. The Sri Lanka Test series is shortly afterwards and New Zealand need to further demonstrate that they have serious aspirations in the Test game to keep the public with them.

Plays of the day from the fifth day of the second Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand at P Sara Oval

Andrew Fernando at the P Sara Oval29-Nov-2012The mix-up
Sri Lanka’s overnight pair had negotiated the early overs without much worry, but they concocted trouble of their own to see the downfall of one of their most experienced batsman. Thilan Samaraweera pushed a Doug Bracewell delivery to cover and set off immediately for a quick single. Perhaps not expecting to scamper runs at this stage in the game, Angelo Mathews was slow to respond at the other end, and as he saw Jeetan Patel swooping in on the ball, he decided to send Samaraweera back. By that stage though, his partner was too far down the track, and his cause was not helped by an extremely slow stop-and-turn that resembled the Titanic trying to avoid the iceberg. Samaraweera was run out by a good two metres.The eager cricketers
Knowing conditions were unlikely to allow them to bowl all the scheduled overs in the day, New Zealand’s cricketers were extra eager to resume their hunt for wickets after lunch, and took the field minutes before the scheduled restart. They had even assumed their fielding positions before the umpires arrived. Sri Lanka’s batsmen were predictably last to come to the middle, two minutes late.The delivery
When Mathews was batting alongside Prasanna Jayawardene, it seemed as though only the new ball would be able to part them. New Zealand’s seamers struggled to get much out of the aging ball on a wearing pitch, and the spinners didn’t get much help from the surface either. But almost out of the blue, debutant Todd Astle produced the ball of the day to dismiss Jayawardene, when he drifted one in then got it to leap off the pitch, turning away. Jayawardene presented a firm defence, but as the ball had bounced more than he had anticipated, it took the edge, high up on the bat, and broke the partnership.The double dive
So keyed up were New Zealand to complete the win that when no. 11 Rangana Herath gloved a short ball from Trent Boult into the off side, two fielders came in and leapt forward, despite the fact that neither of them had a hope of getting there. Brendon McCullum ran forward from third slip and Tim Southee from backward point and the pair performed a futile synchronised dive almost side-by-side, before getting up and smiling it off.

Leicester boss Ruud van Nistelrooy has his eyes set on Manchester United's Toby Collyer and will use his Red Devils 'contacts' to sign the youngster.

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• Van Nistelrooy wants Man Utd's Collyer
• Leicester want to sign 20-year-old on loan
• Dutch coach could 'use his Man Utd contacts'

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Van Nistelrooy was let go by Manchester United last month after having spent just over four months at the club. The Dutch legend was signed on as Erik ten Hag's assistant coach but served his last few weeks as interim boss of the Red Devils after Ten Hag's sacking. With Ruben Amorim having been signed on as head coach, Van Nistelrooy parted ways with United as the Portuguese coach preferred to bring his own coaching team to Old Trafford from Sporting CP.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Van Nistelrooy has now been signed on as Leicester City boss after they parted ways with Steve Cooper. As per The Sun, the Dutchman now wants 'to use Manchester United contacts' to sign the Red Devils' highly-rated youngster Collyer on loan in January. As per the report, United are not ready to part ways with the 20-year-old but could be open to letting him go on loan to play under a manager he is familiar with.

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  Collyer made his first-team debut for Manchester United this season and former boss Ten Hag was highly impressed by the 20-year-old who posted 'freakish' running stats in training and was only bettered by Bruno Fernandes as per Steven Railston of Manchester Evening News.

• WHAT NEXT FOR VAN NISTELROOY?

  After getting a 3-1 win in his first game as Leicester City boss, Van Nistelrooy will now be focused on continuing the form when they take on Brighton at King Power Stadium on Sunday, December 8.

Afghanistan cricketers have found a way to channel their aggression which has helped them focus, but the challenges have just begun, says the coach

Rachna Shetty04-Oct-2013In October 2011, four months into their World Cricket League Championship campaign, Afghanistan were a little wobbly. They had beaten Canada easily but were struggling in the lower half of the group after losing both matches to UAE, a team coached by a man who, until a few months ago, had coached Afghanistan.Former Pakistan fast bowler and current Afghanistan coach, Kabir Khan, can laugh about that memory now. But he is also quick to admit that the losses put Afghanistan under a lot of pressure. And he would know a few things about that.Khan had coached the Afghanistan side through a near-fairytale season, when they went from playing division five of the World Cricket League to a place in the qualifiers for the 2009 World Cup. He coached the team when they beat Ireland to qualify for their first T20 World Cup. And after his stint with UAE ended in 2011, Khan returned to Afghanistan, taking over at a time when the side were under pressure to stay in contention for a top-of-the-table finish.It was that pressure that the Afghanistan team absorbed and thrived on, according to Khan. Speaking after his side’s win against Kenya, which took them to the 2015 World Cup, Khan said that the team had learnt to be unafraid.”The boys have faced a lot of pressure and they are getting used to it, and they are starting to enjoy it,” Khan says. “I think for them, pressure is now something that they want to enjoy and grow into, as opposed to other amateur players who sometimes want to get out of it.”That ability showed in the way their spinners set up the win on Friday, first stifling and then dismissing the Kenyan top-order in a must-win game. It also showed in Mohammad Nabi’s resilient knock of 46, which brushed aside the loss of early wickets and bring the ebullience of win.Khan points out how that maturity and ability were a direct result of the World Cup qualifier in 2009. Afghanistan had a dream run until the qualifier, progressing from division five – the lowest in the tournament – to three and eventually to the qualifying tournament for the 2011 World Cup. The side finished sixth in a group of eight – it wasn’t enough to enter the World Cup, but good enough to get them ODI status for four years.”It [the season] was a huge difference of gain and the team was achieving its targets quickly. They were performing well, but the maturity was not there, to play against the big boys at the top,” Khan says. “And at that stage, if we had qualified for the World Cup and faced losses, it would have meant this team was not good enough at that level.

As a team, you need the support of your nation and that would only come when they know cricket. Now, if the team loses to Australia, people understand that Australia is a big team; if we lose to India, they understand. Now, the whole nation is ready for it.Kabir Khan, the Afghanistan coach

“The game was new in the country, and for them [the fans], they didn’t know the difference between the quality of Pakistan, India, Australia and Afghanistan. These four years, when we didn’t qualify but we still had our ODI status, we played two T20 matches against India and international matches and the people who started following cricket, began understanding the rules and the laws of cricket as well. As a team, you need the support of your nation and that would only come when they know cricket. Now, if the team loses to Australia, people understand that Australia is a big team; if we lose to India, they understand. Now, the whole nation is ready for it. The boys have matured in the last four years and they know what international cricket is all about and how to perform there.”Even as the cricket board is strengthening its own domestic season with limited-overs and first-class tournaments at different levels, the trend of playing in other countries is something that Khan encourages, for entirely practical purposes. Mohammad Nabi and pace bowler Hamid Hassan have played for the MCC alongside players like Sourav Ganguly and Brian Lara. Nabi plays in the Dhaka Premier Division, while fast bowler Shapoor Zadran has played for Badureliya Sports Club in Sri Lanka.”We want them to be busy,” Khan says. “The developed cricketing countries, like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England and Australia have cricketing seasons, where boys are busy playing domestic cricket, keeping fit and they always have a professional coach and a professional staff. The problem with our players was, and is, that they are not always with professionals. We always encourage them to go to other domestic leagues; they will play with the top players and with top coaches there, they will learn something there.”The team doesn’t have too much time to celebrate, though. The World T20 qualifiers are scheduled to take place in the UAE between November 15 and 30 and that is the immediate goal. Given the format of the tournament, Afghanistan will be aiming to top their group and secure a place in the World T20 next year.The 50-over World Cup is a long-term goal and Khan stresses that training his batsmen to understand and adapt to Australian conditions will be one of the biggest challenges. Time, he believes, is on his side.”Asian batsmen struggle in Australia, so we have to create an environment for our batsmen, where they get a taste of what sort of wickets there are and how to play on wickets that are going to be bouncy, seaming,” he says. “We might take them on a tour to Australia, two or three months before the start of the World Cup and then come back and work on our weaknesses. At the Global Academy in Dubai, they have prepared some Australian-type pitches as well, so we can practise on them. Those are the things that you can work on. It’s going to be helpful to our fast bowling. And we have enough time on our hands, which is very good for us.”One of the things Khan is proud of is the transformation of the players from aggressive, hard-hitting batsmen to focused individuals, who have still retained their attitude.”By nature, they [the team] are aggressive, which goes against them because if you’re always trying to hit sixes, you’re going to get out. So as a coach, it’s about channelising their aggression and trying to control it at a time when it’s not needed. Now, after four years, I can say the fielding and bowling is around 80 percent controlled, while in the batting, they’ve controlled around 60 percent and 40 percent still remains to be controlled. But that’s their nature and that’s why they make good fast bowlers and fielders. They don’t want to lose to anyone. I have seen them play against the big teams and they always want to win; they talk about how it would feel to beat such a big team. Other teams are happy when they qualify, but this team when it qualifies, it wants to win.”

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Mar-2016Captain Kane Williamson, though, first steadied the ship and then got stuck into his work along with Colin Munro•Getty Images/ICCMunro’s pyrotechnics and Williamson’s touch added 74 in quick time but both fell in quick succession•AFPCorey Anderson kept the runs coming with a quick 28 but England’s bowlers continued to chip away•IDI/GettyNew Zealand could only muster 20 in the last four overs, finishing with 153 as England’s death bowling came to the fore•Getty ImagesJason Roy gave England a brisk start, taking 16 runs off the first over•Getty ImagesRoy got stuck into New Zealand’s bowlers, reaching his fifty off 26 balls in the seventh over•IDI/Getty ImagesAlex Hales played the support role as the pair added 82 in 8.2 overs to set England up•Getty ImagesIsh Sodhi led a brief New Zealand fightback when he got the wicket of Roy and Eoin Morgan in the 13th over•IDI/Getty ImagesRoy was dismissed for 78 off 44 balls and his knock included 11 fours and two sixes•Getty ImagesJoe Root, though, held steady ensuring that England’s asking rate was in control•IDI/Getty ImagesJos Buttler smashed 23 runs off the last five balls to help England reach the target with 17 balls to spare and seal their berth in the final in Kolkata•IDI/Getty Images

The former USMNT defender sent a message to the Americans about taking the trophy: 'This is what we expect you to do'

• Lalas says Gold Cup should be standard, not praised
• He calls for focus on World Cup preparation
• USMNT coming off two losses in Nations League

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  WHAT HAPPENED

  Following the USMNT’s poor showing at the CONCACAF Nations League finals, with losses to both Panama and Canada, questions have been raised about how Mauricio Pochettino's side will perform at the upcoming 2025 Gold Cup.

  Former USMNT star Alexi Lalas says winning the tournament should be the minimum expectation.

  "I find myself kind of fantasizing about this summer, obviously, where I have a lot of focus on 2026," Lalas said on his State of the Union Podcast. "Trying to imagine how I will, or how I should feel, if the U.S. were to live up to what I say, and to win the Gold Cup… I picture myself saying there's no confetti, there's no music, there's no 'Hey, good job guys," Because this is what we expect you to do. And now that you're finally living up to it, you don't get an attaboy relative to what you have done in here in the past."

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• WHAT ALEXI LALAS SAID

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The USMNT finished a disappointing fourth in the 2025 Nations League. That marked the first time since 2019 that they had lost consecutive matches to CONCACAF opposition, and the first time they failed to win the Nations League. Meanwhile, Mexico captured their first Nations League title, intensifying regional competition ahead of the Gold Cup.

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  WHAT’S NEXT?

  The USMNT begins their Gold Cup campaign this summer, facing a group that includes Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, and Saudi Arabia. The tournament offers Pochettino an opportunity to evaluate players in competitive matches ahead of the 2026 World Cup.