American star Folarin Balogun admitted he was not surprised that the decision to allow him to challenge his red card ban was “controversial”, as he accepted that he and his teammates let fans down with their crushing loss to Belgium.
Balogun spoke of the anger sparked by FIFA’s decision for the first time shortly after the politically charged decision to allow him to play, and it did not help that he failed to make an impact when the United States crashed out of the World Cup with a 4-1 loss to Belgium.
“When you get a red card, usually the protocol is not to play in the next game,” the New York-born striker told reporters in Seattle on Monday about his ejection in the previous round against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“Then, when this decision is overturned, of course, it will be controversial,” he admitted.
Balogun, 25, said the anger sparked by the decision to change the red card ban for the first time at a World Cup since 1962 “didn’t really surprise him.”
“But my job as a player is just to go out there and focus on my job. And I’m disappointed that we couldn’t win today,” he said.
“There’s not much I can say about it. All it says is that Belgium were the better team today. They played much better than us.”
Balogun – a former Arsenal youth player who plays for French club Monaco – was unable to add three goals to his World Cup tally.
He admitted the poor performance, saying: “Today we did not give the audience much to cheer about.”
“That’s the most frustrating thing, and that’s the part that personally hurts me the most.
“It’s hard to explain not having the energy in the round of 16 of the World Cup. So I can only tell you my feelings, which are disappointment and a lot of sadness.”
The USMNT has not been able to clear the Round of 16 hurdle since the 2002 edition, where they reached the quarterfinals.
But the build-up to the match was overshadowed by the controversy surrounding Balogun. President Trump claimed he asked FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the red card.
UEFA – football’s governing body in Europe – claimed that FIFA had “crossed a red line” when it criticized the decision to overturn Balogun’s red card.
“When rule custodians are not guaranteed, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of the competition is undermined,” UEFA said.