The ESPN analyst and former USMNT star joined Mic'Up to discuss Nations League result, unsettled goalkeeper situation
Mauricio Pochettino and the USMNT underwhelmed at last week's CONCACAF Nations League, losing to both Panama and Canada and failing to the defend the trophy they had won each of the previous three years. The U.S. conceded in stoppage-time against the to fall 1-0, and Jesse Marsch's beat them 2-1 in the third-place game Sunday night.
And none of it sat well with U.S. goalkeeping legend and ESPN FC analyst Kasey Keller.
"I think what we're wanting to see is a bigger demand from coaches," Keller told GOAL. "And I think we were still expecting a more fiery performance against Canada, which didn't happen. I said something after that performance – it just looked like a group of guys that would rather be on the beach taking Instagram photos during this break than being with the national team."
Keller is among many former U.S. internationals – including Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard – questioning the USMNT's performance, especially with the 2026 FIFA World Cup now just six international windows away. And as a former shotstopper himself, Keller also believes the U.S. are unsettled at goalkeeper.
"We went to a situation where, at one stage, we had four [American] goalkeepers starting in the Premier League – from Brad [Friedel], myself, Tim [Howard] and Marcus Hahnemann," Keller said. "And then now we're going through maybe a little bit of an anomaly the other way that we're we're not having anybody really at this point grab this position by both hands."
Keller, like fellow former US goalkeeper Tony Meola, believes Matt Turner needs to move from Crystal Palace to get regular playing time if he wants to keep the USMNT starting spot, saying "It's like Matt's still trying to prove himself in Europe, and he's 30 years-old, you know?"
Keller, who accumulated more than 100 caps for the USMNT, covers both global and domestic soccer for ESPN. The now 55-year-old spoke on the USMNT's March setbacks, the growing concerns with the goalkeeper pool, Turner's status and more in the latest edition of Mic’d Up, a recurring feature in which GOAL US taps into the perspective of broadcasters, analysts, and other pundits on the state of soccer in the U.S. and abroad.
Getty ImagesON THE USMNT, NATIONS LEAGUE
GOAL: What were the USMNT’s shortcomings in the CONCACAF Nations League finals?
KELLER: There's clearly something missing. Is it leadership off the field? Leadership on the field? I mean, I think there's going to be a lot of searching going on to try to figure out how to rectify this. You know, we were talking last night on ESPN's Futbol Americas that there's six windows left before the World Cup. That's the only time there is… Pochettino has been in the job since October. I think with the huge salary increase that he got from all other managers, I think there was an expectation that with that was going to come an institutional improvement – and what we've seen is a team go backwards.
I'm not solely pointing a finger at Pochettino, but I mean, when you're the guy in charge and you're the guy that is getting significantly more than anybody else got for the job, there comes a different level of pressure. You don't have to qualify. You've got, supposedly, this extremely well talented side that is massively underachieving, and so on. You know, usually, everything starts with the person making the decisions. And I think those of us covering this have had some questions on, maybe roster choices, questions on the way matches have been set up, substitutions, things like that.
I think early on, I tried to be a little bit positive by going, "OK wait a minute. We know we're really looking at a two-year preseason because nothing really matters until it matters." You look at a couple of competitions like the Nations League and Gold Cup, and you think, "OK, those are FIFA events and we want to obviously want to win those, but in the end, the only thing that really matters is a good World Cup." So I think there's still a little bit of time to kind of go and say, "OK, let's see if you can figure this out."
But so far, it's looked like, at least from the outside, that there was a level of maybe overconfidence [from Pochettino]. "I've got this squad, we've got a bunch of games that really don't matter. I have all this time to be able to just, you know, call these guys in and do well with that and then look at some of these guys." And it's like, well, wait a minute here…. It seems very casual to me. And going back to the point with six windows, how casual can you afford to be?
GOAL: Following Sunday's result vs. Canada, Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey shared criticism of the team. Jozy Altidore, meanwhile, came out and said everybody needed to come together. However, an overarching theme among former players is that this group seems to lack a certain passion or an acknowledgement on what it means to wear the crest to represent your nation. Do you agree with that?
KELLER: We've been saying the same thing! We've been saying it over a while now. I mean, even before Pochettino, there always seemed to be these performances that just looked lackluster. I mean, my producer had asked me after the match against Panama, what was the one word that you felt, you know, kind of represented the match? I just said slow. And then in Pochettino’s press conference, he said it about four or five times. I don't understand how, with multiple managers, this side can't seem to be motivated week-in and week-out when or match-in and match-out, because you're not really playing week-in and week-out.
Match-in and match-out, what we have seen was a poor performance, but they somehow found a way because the talent was that much better than the opponent, got a result, and then we saw a response in the next game, and we said, "OK, they figured it out – let's see if this is the new standard going forward." And then the next match shows up, and again, you're like, "OK, maybe they didn't learn from that."
They need to bring the effort, the intensity every time they step on the pitch. Yeah, you're going to have those days where your touch is just a little bit off and you're not necessarily playing as well as you would like, but that shouldn't change the effort and attitude in your performance. Maybe then, if things aren't clicking as well as you would like, maybe you don't try that thread the needle pass, because it's just not going for you. Maybe you just play a little bit more simpler, but it doesn't change your your workrate, your aggressiveness. And I think that's what a lot of fans, a lot of ex-players and people in media are seeing these performances where you're like, "What's going on here?"
I think what we're wanting to see is a bigger demand from coaches. I think after the first game in the loss vs. Panama, I actually saw Pochettino – for the first time – actually say this isn't good enough. And I think we were still expecting a more fiery performance against Canada, which didn't happen. I said something after that performance – it just looked like a group of guys that would rather be on the beach taking Instagram photos during this break than being with the national team.
GOAL: Did any players stand out to you that impressed over the two matches?
KELLER: The two guys that I praised – who I think were more surprise inclusions in the squad – were Diego Luna and Patrick Agyemang. The two guys that actually looked like they cared and wanted to get into the next camp, and the camp after that, and the camp after that. And other guys? I don't know if there's just this apathy where, "Oh, I'm playing at a decent club and therefore, of course I'm going to be called in and of course I'm going to play." But at least we still have a couple guys, you know, trying to fight for something.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesON POCHETTINO
GOAL: In your opinion, what do you believe Mauricio Pochettino’s next steps are ahead of the June friendlies and the Gold Cup?
KELLER: I think he needs to actually learn his squad. I don't know if he's truly done an ultra deep dive into what he has and what he doesn't have. I would find that hard to believe, but that's what it looks like to me. To me, when you have a guy that is not in your initial roster [Max Arfsten] and then starts a game in that camp? That tells me you didn't know your squad. Because how do you have a guy that ends up starting and he wasn't even in your initial roster?
I think there was an idea that this was going to be a lot easier than it has become. And I think that he's going to have to show the fans, show people like myself, that he's 100 percent committed. I want to see him – or at least photos of him at games – watching players and talking to players [at their clubs]. So far, I haven't seen any of that. There's a reason why you see the English national team manager at a Liverpool vs. Manchester United game where he's going to have five or six players [featuring]. Can he watch it on TV? Will he watch the tape later? Yeah, of course he will, but there's a perception you have to be seen to be involved to get that respect… I could be fully, fully wrong, but what I'm not wrong is what I am . Be seen as the national team manager that's getting paid three times more than any national team manager ever has.
Getty ImagesON THE GOALKEEPER POSITION
GOAL: One of the big topics around the national team right now the shot-stopper for the 2026 World Cup. Matt Turner is currently the starter, but questions around his abilities surfaced again in March. Is the U.S. goalkeeping situation reaching a dire stage? Do they need to remain faithful to Turner?
KELLER: I think that's kind of where we are right now, right? I think we're putting faith in somebody that hasn't, you know, particularly let us down. But really, the question is, what are the options? This isn't a club team. You don't get to go just go buy somebody. Zack Steffen – I think a lot of people thought was going to be the starter throughout this time period, but that didn't work out for him, for whatever reason. You know, Matt's kind of followed a little bit of the same path [as Steffen]… go to Europe, get in a situation where you're not playing, and then have questions brought about. Next? Show me where the competition is. It’s not there yet. There's some young kids who were trying to get to that point, but they're not there yet. And again, they're young kids. You don't know if they ever will be [starters], so you're still waiting for that emergence.
We went to a situation where, at one stage, we had four [American] goalkeepers starting in the Premier League – from Brad [Friedel], myself, Tim [Howard] and Marcus Hahnemann. I think the person I feel the most sorry for is Marcus – he'd have 100 caps if he was born 10 years later. And it's just one of those anomalies I think that happened at that stage, and then now we're going through maybe a little bit of an anomaly the other way that we're we're not having anybody really at this point grab this position by both hands – where it was something that we hadn't had to worry about in a long, long time. Because even when Tim and then let's say Brad and I then got a little older, then Brad Guzan steps in to be a great competition for Tim.
So, yeah, it's a little odd that a position that we really haven't had to worry about for a long, long time. In fact, probably the opposite. We had other players that probably deserved more opportunities, but because the competition was so strong in that particular position, they didn't get anywhere near the matches they should have and now we're just kind of hoping that something turns around with players in those positions.
I was a little surprised over these last couple camps that maybe Steffen hasn't played a little bit more. I know there was a little bit of talk that he potentially may have played in the match against Canada, but had the flu. But, yeah, it’s a worrying position, just like the striker position is worrying, just like the centerback pairing is worrying. And, you know, the overall general malaise of the team is significantly worrying.
GOAL: You mentioned young goalkeepers coming up through U.S. Soccer. The likes of Diego Kochen, Patrick Schulte and Gabriel Slonina are all players that U.S. fans are keeping their eyes on. Have any of them impressed you, and do you think any of them deserve a first-team shot ahead of 2026?
KELLER: Yeah, I'm familiar with them. But I think the thing is that we have to be, you know, very careful. From my understanding, Kochen’s not even playing with the second team. He's still playing with the U19 team. So, that's an interesting situation. There's another kid, Gavin Beavers, who just went to Bromby, then there’s Gaga Slonina who went into the black hole that is Chelsea's second-team… it's all about first-team football, OK? You know, it's all about getting yourself playing and competing at the highest level possible.
I don't get too excited. All you have to do is go back to every country's under 20 teams and show me how many of those guys went on to be stars in league play and national team play, right? It's those little carrots, it's those little motivating factors for the guy that didn't make it. It's a goal to achieve at a certain age, but in the end, nothing matters until you're truly playing against men week-in and week-out. And yes, it’s great there's a kid here, there's a kid there… well, until they do it, come back to me then.
Getty ImagesON MATT TURNER
GOAL: After game one, Tony Meola said that he thinks Turner needs to move this summer to lock in the role for 2026 and if he doesn't, there's a chance that someone like Steffen could take the starting spot from him. What are the next steps for Matt – whether that’s returning to MLS or staying in Europe?
KELLER: The best option would be to play somewhere at the highest level that Matt can play at. If that's MLS, then that's MLS, if it's moving to Germany, if it's moving to the Championship, if it's moving to Portugal. Where? it doesn't really matter. I think the key to goalkeeping is needing to play. And I think the one thing that can be a little bit tricky at times is, because there's only one of you on the pitch, there's very little rotation, and if it is, it's for a Cup competition. If you're in a team, the chances are you're only going to have a couple matches in the Cup, and if you're in each Cup, you're lucky to play before you get knocked out.
I don't necessarily mean run straight back to MLS, but are there other options in Europe? The other tricky part is, when you're in the Premier League and you haven't truly established yourself, you're on a salary that makes it extremely difficult for somewhere in another country to take on that salary without knowing that you're truly accomplished. It's like Matt's still trying to prove himself in Europe, and he's 30 years-old, you know? It'll be interesting to see where that goes. I mean, in my first four seasons in the Championship for Millwall, I played over 200 matches, and to me, it was a perfect starting point to get that experience, before I moved to the Premier League, to La Liga, to the Bundesliga and back to the Premier League.
I had a base and it gets really tricky when you get into a situation where you go to a club, you get a really good salary, but you haven't really built that base. And then now someone's saying, "Wait a minute here, I'll take you, but I'm not taking that salary." Sure, because you're not proven, and we're still trying to figure that out. So I'll be very interested to see where he goes. You know, like everybody, I just want to see guys in the right situation, playing well week-in and week-out wherever that is.