AL RAYYAN, Qatar — Weary limbs and rueful stares crawled around the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium here in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. Just minutes after midnight, proud players offered grudging claps to thousands of supporters. Disappointment trailed them, the U.S. men’s national team, to their locker room after a 1-1 draw with Wales in their 2022 World Cup opener. Head coach Gregg Berhalter could see it etched across their faces.
They were “a bit disappointed” or “really disappointed,” depending on who you asked, because they’d let two colossal points slip away. They’d conceded a late equalizer, via a clumsy tackle and a penalty, that left Group B hanging precariously in the balance.