Former USMNT forward Herculez Gomez has insisted that Gregg Berhalter is not the right man to lead the Stars and Stripes to the 2026 World Cup.
The United States were spared their blushes when a Cory Burke own goal in the sixth minute of stoppage time tied them to force overtime in their Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Jamaica.
The No. 13 Americans nearly lost their third straight game after Greg Leigh scored 30 seconds in for the 57th-ranked Reggae Boyz, but Burke’s own goal followed by Haji Wright’s goals in the minutes sixth and 19 of overtime saved the triple. -1 victory for the United States.
The victory allowed the Americans to reach the Nations League final against Mexico with a chance to win a third consecutive title this weekend.
But even that can’t save Berhalter, Gomez believes, as the analyst insisted the head coach was on the brink of being fired.
Herculez Gomez has insisted that Gregg Berhalter is not the right man to lead the USMNT
United States narrowly escaped humiliation in Nations League semifinal against Jamaica
“Gregg Berhalter was two seconds away from everyone calling for his head,” Gomez said on ESPN. ‘Of all those who say that this is not the man to lead this team.
“I don’t think I feel much different today after this game than I did before. Gregg Berhalter can be a good coach up to a certain level. He is not the coach of the USMNT at this level. He is not the coach that will take the USMNT to a World Cup in 2026.”
The 41-year-old shared the clip on X, formerly known as Twitter, doubling down on his claims in the caption.
“The #USMNT can beat Mexico (or not) this weekend for their third CNL title,” he wrote alongside the clip from the Futbol Américas show on Friday.
“But it won’t change what I’ve seen and what I feel about Gregg Berhalter being the USMNT coach.”
Gomez isn’t the only former USMNT star attacking Berhalter this week.
Alexi Lalas led a series of former American soccer players who questioned Berhalter’s position with the Copa América just three months away.
The former defender criticized the national team for its performance, especially during the first half, and appeared to question Berhalter’s position.
Alexi Lalas led the criticism of the performance and the questions about Berhalter’s position
The former American defender criticized the team’s performance in the first half on social media.
‘That was a horrible half of #USMNT football. I wish I could go down to the locker room and break them all new. #USAvJAM,” he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, at halftime.
He took direct aim at Berhalter on Friday afternoon when he insisted the coach deserved the blame for his team’s performance.
“You can do whatever you want,” he posted. “But I can say that it was a horrible performance and, as a coach, Berhalter deserves criticism for his team’s complete lack of urgency, ruthlessness or energy. But he also made the necessary changes in players and tactics to achieve victory in a knockout match .’
While former American players such as Taylor Twellman, Eric Wynalda and Tab Ramos have previously been passive regarding Berhalter’s role as USMNT head coach following his rehiring, the tide appeared to be turning.
The trio also joined in and, although they did not directly attack Berhalter, they gave a scathing analysis of the performance with some indications that the coach was to blame.
“Unfortunately, the final product of this team remains far less than the sum of its individual parts… year after year,” Ramos posted.
Taylor Twellman and Tab Ramos also spoke about the state of the United States team
Meanwhile, Twellman fired off a pair of tweets questioning Berhalter’s tactical decisions.
“Initially they didn’t call him in fwiw…” he wrote, referring to Wright after his winning goals in overtime.
Earlier on Thursday night, the Apple TV MLS commentator was apparently taken aback by the decision to play midfielder Weston McKennie at right back.
‘McKennie as RB now…’ he posted along with shrugging and raised eyebrow emojis.
‘Own goal. Appropriate. #USMNT,” he added after Burke helped elevate America.
Former American stars, including Twellman and Eric Wynalda, also weighed in with criticism.
Wynalda, a retired forward turned coach and commentator, weighed in and wrote: “It’s getting harder and harder to care about this American team. This all feels strange.’
‘If they don’t score an own goal, where are we today? What is the conversation? Is there any conversation? he asked later, responding to a fan who called Berhalter’s second term “outdated.”
Thursday’s disappointing performance comes just three months before the United States hosts the Copa América and offered a worrying glimpse into its chances of success.
The Copa América also serves as a warm-up for the 2026 World Cup, which the United States will co-host with Canada and Mexico and whose final will take place at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Berhalter’s home state.