SEATTLE — On his 25th birthday — and on what should have been the beginning of personal preparations for the World Cup Round of 16 in this soccer-celebrating city — U.S. striker Folarin Balogun spent a portion of his Friday morning reacting to the controversial red card that will force him to miss Monday’s showdown with Belgium.
“A yellow card would have been fair,” he said before training at the University of Washington. “It’s something that’s happened, so we have to move forward, and I have to accept it.”
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On Wednesday, Balogun scored his team-best third goal of the tournament to give the U.S. a halftime lead against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Early in the second half, however, he was red-carded following a video review of an incident that did not initially warrant discipline from referee Raphael Claus.
Pursuing the ball with defender Tarik Muharemović, Balogun stepped in a normal motion onto the back of the defender’s lower right leg and ankle.
The video assistant referee recommended that Claus review the play, and moments later, he announced Balogun’s “serious foul” warranted the red card.
Coach Mauricio Pochettino described it as “a normal action that happened because by accident. … Never a red card.”
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There was no protocol for U.S. officials to appeal the subsequent one-game suspension. Red cards are subject to additional penalties from FIFA’s disciplinary committee, but the governing body announced Friday that Balogun would have to sit out just one match.
If the U.S. advances to the quarterfinals, he would be eligible to play against Spain or Portugal on July 10 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
Folarin Balogun remained upbeat Friday despite a controversial red card that will sideline him for the USMNT‘s Round of 16 match against Belgium.
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters / REUTERS)
Balogun was not available to comment after the Round of 32 match, and his interview with reporters Friday offered a glimpse into his emotions and mindset.
“If you’ve played the game, you would understand there’s scenarios you simply can’t avoid, and it has to be taken into context when it’s being reviewed,” he said, referring to Claus reaching his decision by watching slow-motion replays.
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“I felt it wasn’t on this occasion. As you all saw, there’s nowhere else to put your leg. It’s going to be unavoidable.”
With every right in that moment to be furious with Claus’ decision, Balogun has taken the high road in every imaginable way.
“I’ve been upset, I’ve been happy [about scoring] — it’s been surreal, to be honest,” he said. “But for me, it was just important to stay calm. I never want to react out of anger and out of emotion. There’s still lots of people we’re inspiring — little kids, boys and girls who are watching, and we have to show them the correct way to handle things, even when you think it’s unjust.”
Balogun also made a point of shaking Claus’ hand after the 2-0 victory at Levi’s Stadium.
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“It’s not an excuse to be disrespectful and not do the right thing,” he said. “After every game, I tried to shake the referee’s hand. This game was no different. The most important thing for me is also to give the correct example to people watching. This is something I’m aware [of], that the World Cup might be the first time a lot of American viewers are tuning in, so it’s important just to show people whether things happen to you, good or bad, to continue to be yourself.”
With Balogun unavailable, Pochettino will need to make a lineup decision: straight up replace Balogun with striker Ricardo Pepi or Haji Wright, or shift greater frontline responsibility to a player such as Christian Pulisic. Pepi has appeared in all four matches, scoring twice, while Wright has made one brief appearance.
Pochettino will not comment again until his scheduled news conference Sunday afternoon.
“We’ve got guys that can fill in and have to be ready for the opportunity to step up,” midfielder Tyler Adams said. “When you miss a player like Balo, obviously things change a little bit, but we’ve been flexible, guys have shown they’re ready to play, if it’s Pepi, if it’s Haji, if we go a different direction. … It should be an exciting opportunity for whoever has to step up.”
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Though he’s ineligible to play Monday, Balogun will maintain his regular routine in hopes the U.S. will continue its stirring run in the tournament.
“Always being on the practice field just helps me to take my mind off things,” he said. “So for me, it’s another day.”
Balogun scored twice in the Group D opener against Paraguay and started the second game against Australia before joining several other regulars on the bench for the inconsequential group finale against Türkiye. On Wednesday, he seized on Malik Tillman‘s twice-deflected pass and scored from 14 yards in the 45th minute.
The red card was his first for club or country since last November, when he was sent off while playing for Ligue 1’s Monaco against Lens. Before that, he had not received a red card since the 2020-21 season playing for Arsenal‘s under-23 squad.
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“My role is just to continue to support everybody, to keep morale high,” he said. “I’m sure for the game against Belgium we can really create a great atmosphere to make the game as challenging as possible.”
The U.S. received thunderous support from the sold-out Seattle crowd for the Australia match.
Balogun has many personal supporters — friends and family — attending the tournament. Even as they joined the Levi’s Stadium crowd in protesting the red card, he kept his cool.
“It was just important to continue to be calm, because you don’t make good decisions when you’re thinking [with] emotion,” he said. “I never tried to do that.”
