It was a day of celebration for some FC Dallas players and academy graduates and one of frustration for others, as the U.S. men’s national team’s World Cup squad was announced Wednesday.
FC Dallas forward Jesus Ferreira was named to the United States’ World Cup roster, but winger Paul Arriola was not selected, a surprise after the 27-year-old had a career year at the club level with FCD and played in five of the United States’ World Cup qualification matches.
U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter set out his decision-making process at an event Wednesday in New York City.
“Jesus has been good for us, and a guy who really understands the game plan and how to execute it,” Berhalter said at the event.
Berhalter called Ferreira earlier this week as the forward drove home from his younger brother’s academy game to deliver the news he’d be included on the roster.
A Colombian-American who moved to North Texas when his father David joined FCD, Ferreira became a U.S. citizen in late 2019. But he quickly made his mark for the Stars and Stripes, scoring twice in a January 2021 friendly match before adding a goal in World Cup qualification and four more in Concacaf Nations League.
“I wanted to play with Colombia because that’s where I was born. My dad played there,” Ferreira told The Striker earlier this year. “But obviously things didn’t work out, and the U.S. gave me the opportunity that I needed.
“I took advantage of it. I grabbed it, worked hard and am working hard to represent the U.S. on the big stage.”
Now, Ferreira is on that stage and, while the butterflies are starting to come, he’s ready to fight for a starting role and to find the back of the net.
“I’m excited for the opportunity that coach Gregg has given me and I’m excited that the team believes in me and sees what I can do,” Ferreira said after the announcement.
Arriola had been called for most U.S. rosters this season, posting on social media his “goal was to put myself in the best position possible to get to this point, and I believe I did.”
“Really disappointed for Paul, just devastated for him,” FCD president Dan Hunt told The Striker on Wednesday night.
“He’s such a great guy and such an important player for FC Dallas. Paul, I think, got caught up in the numbers game because of taking five outside backs.”
FCD manager Nico Estévez said he had spoken with Arriola after the winger got the news and tried to provide support, agreeing he’d done everything possible to get into the best position to make the World Cup roster.
“I think Paul is a mature person, an intelligent person. Obviously this will affect him,” he said. “It’s a tough blow to have worked the way he worked, getting past the serious injury he had and working every day to get to this date and be on this list.
“It’s been a lot of sacrifice and work behind it, but today I told him he can’t say that he didn’t give everything. He can’t regret anything. He gave everything to be there. Everything he could’ve done he did, and did it really well and now it’s about respecting the coaching staff’s decision.”
Other players with ties to FCD abound, with the club’s stated goal of producing players for the senior men’s national team to have a chance to win the World Cup beginning to come to fruition.
“Look, it’s a validation” of the club’s decision to invest resources into the academy and player production,” Hunt said. “We doubled down on it, especially after the debacle of not making the World Cup in 2018, we stayed committed to the plan. I’m pleased a number of our partners have had that transformation in Major League Soccer over these years. They continue to produce very good players. It’s going to take all of us.
“We continue to supply high-quality players. This is a big moment for the club. I’m proud of our staff and so many people who have worked so incredibly hard for a long time. It’s a total proof of concept.”
Midfielder Weston McKennie is a Little Elm native who came through the FCD youth system but never played for the first team, opting instead to sign a contract with German side Schalke when he turned 18. He has since moved on to Juventus and become a key player for club and country.
Center back Walker Zimmerman started his career with FCD before moving on to LAFC and later Nashville SC. Fullback Shaq Moore had a swing through the FCD academy. Moore likely was chosen over another FCD product, right back Reggie Cannon, who currently plays for Boavista in Portugal.
Joining McKennie in the midfield is Kellyn Acosta, another FCD academy product and a Plano native. Acosta is coming off a season in which he helped LAFC to the MLS Cup.
“We can see how good an academy and program FC Dallas has,” Ferreira said. “You see two other guys on the roster who came up through the academy and played at each level. I’m just happy I can say I played at FC Dallas’ academy and played for the first team.”
In addition to Arriola missing out, FCD academy product Ricardo Pepi also missed the cut, with forwards Jordan Morris and Haji Wright making the squad over the El Paso native. Pepi struggled after leaving FCD prior to the 2022 season, not scoring with FC Augsburg in the German Bundesliga. But he had hoped to get back into the squad after excelling on loan with Groningen in the Dutch Eredivisie this campaign.
“In some of the cases it’s more about what we have than what we don’t have,” Berhalter said. “In the case of Ricardo, that was a really difficult conversation I had to have with him. It’s always difficult when a guy helps you get to the World Cup … and isn’t going to be part of the program. Again, it’s more about who we did add.”
The U.S. opens the tournament Nov. 21 against Wales, playing England on Nov. 25 and Iran on Nov. 29.
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