Senior ⚽ writer, @TheAthletic. Now at... henrybushnell.bsky.social Email: hbushnell@theathletic.com Signal: henrybushnell.03
Washington D.C.
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Three months ago, the Philadelphia Union were the worst team in MLS.
Now, they're the hottest over 13 games *in league history*
Huh? How?
On the ☕️ café meeting when captain Ale Bedoya knew a turnaround was coming — and the 🪒 thin margins of MLS: nytimes.com/athletic/7682677…
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Steve Cherundolo speaks w/ @TheAthleticFC about:
🥇 the U.S. Olympic team project, aiming for gold
🗒️ plans for Copa América, Olympic rosters that are "balanced"
⚽️ broader ambitions at U.S. Soccer
🇩🇪 his months away from coaching
and more, free to read: nytimes.com/athletic/7670601…
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Henry Bushnell retweeted
🇺🇸 Mauricio Pochettino's youthful USMNT squad saw 13 players make their debut this window.
Which players are ready to stay in the senior USMNT group, which are on the bubble and who needs some more time to develop?
w/ @HenryBushnell
nytimes.com/athletic/7668514…
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Gio Reyna has started 7 consecutive games for the first time *in his professional career*
He's regained confidence in his body.
"I feel like I'm getting back to my full self," he said after the USMNT's win over Mexico.
Piece below on his sudden stability + quiet resurgence ⬇️
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Inside Cavan Sullivan's first iconic USMNT moment:
🧠 visualization before a pregame nap
⚽️ Dad's advice paying off
🧎♂️➡️ "cuts all over his knees" from failed knee slide
More, @TheAthleticFC, from a memorable night in the desert:
nytimes.com/athletic/7657952…
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Free to read here: nytimes.com/athletic/7657952…
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USMNT and Mexico take the field… one to cheers and camera phones, the other to mostly boos.
“Me-xi-co, Me-xi-co” chants in the concourse
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📍Glendale, Arizona
There are *some* USMNT fans. But even the U.S. Soccer “block party” is mostly green
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Our all-encompassing preview of USMNT-Mexico is here: nytimes.com/athletic/7654564…
(Ignore the lineup projection. Actual starting 11 is below. Got 9 of 11 correct though!)
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Henry Bushnell retweeted
The making of Adri Mehmeti:
⚽️ Literal millions of touches in his backyard, dubbed Mini-Maracanã by his father, Van
🧠 "He is one of the most intellegent midfield players I've ever seen," said RBNY academy director
👀 "This boy is different."
nytimes.com/athletic/7641859…
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Henry Bushnell retweeted
Somehow, a 6-foot-7, 18-year-old centerback has flown under the radar in the #USMNT pool. If his recent trajectory continues, that won't be true for long.
On Neil Pierre, the U.S.'s potential solution at a position of need.
nytimes.com/athletic/7636962…
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Henry Bushnell retweeted
ORLANDO — The USMNT beats Peru 4-1 in their first game of a new World Cup cycle.
New tradition of the crowd singing Country Roads after a win continues here in Orlando
Takeaways with @HenryBushnell
nytimes.com/athletic/7633251…
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Cavan Sullivan becomes the youngest player to start for the USMNT this century.
Also the youngest to play, at all, in a FIFA window this century.
Second-youngest to start ever, per @jefecrandall
The making of Cavan Sullivan:
👶volleys in diapers at age 2
⚽️a dad who trained him, and not only allowed parents to yell on sidelines; “I expect them to yell"
🧠a "fuck-you mentality"
👦brothers who shaped him
Much more, free to read @TheAthleticFC:
nytimes.com/athletic/7622939…
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The making of Cavan Sullivan:
👶volleys in diapers at age 2
⚽️a dad who trained him, and not only allowed parents to yell on sidelines; “I expect them to yell"
🧠a "fuck-you mentality"
👦brothers who shaped him
Much more, free to read @TheAthleticFC:
nytimes.com/athletic/7622939…
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For more on the Sullivan family, @tha_Real_Kumar spent time with them a few years back — when Cavan was waking up at 4 a.m. to prepare for an overseas youth NT camp — and wrote an awesome piece on them: backheeled.com/meet-the-sull…
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Noahkai Banks has picked Germany over the USMNT.
He's filed for a one-time switch. It hasn't yet been confirmed by FIFA, but if/when approved, he'll play for Germany's U-21s this month, and will no longer be eligible to represent the U.S.
w/ @SebSB: nytimes.com/athletic/7607256…
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Henry Bushnell retweeted
Mauricio Pochettino has summoned 12 newcomers to the #USMNT for the Sept-Oct window, including most of the program's top young prospects: Cavan, Neil Pierre, Mehmeti + more.
Get to know the new guard, who will be given every shot at the 2030 World Cup.
nytimes.com/athletic/7602978…
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This week begins the great USMNT reset.
For the first time this decade, the entire player pool gets "a fresh start."
So, here is a look at that pool. 90+ players, broken down by position and age, all through the lens of 2030.
Free to read @TheAthletic:
nytimes.com/athletic/7593758…
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