By OkayGoal
For several of the U.S. Men’s National Team’s experienced players, they know what to expect in Saturday’s showdown with Mexico, but for many of the young talents, it will be their first encounter.
The USMNT-Mexico rivalry resumes on Saturday when the two CONCACAF nations square off in friendly action at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It will mark the first matchup between the two rivals since the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final, a match that El Tri won 2-1 to end extend their current unbeaten run over the Americans to two matches.
Mauricio Pochettino’s squad are unbeaten this window, defeating Peru 4-1 and Chile 4-2 over the past week, while Rafa Marquez’s men have tied Colombia 1-1 and Peru 1-1 in their two matches this fall.
Saturday’s match may be labeled as a friendly, but USMNT defenders Antonee Robinson and Sergino Dest both know the importance of facing off with Mexico.
“I feel like ever since I first played against Mexico, it’s always been the same,” Robinson told reporters Thursday. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s a qualifier or a friendly, Nations League, Gold Cup, it’s always a fierce competition. You want to win. It feels really personal, and you want to be the winner of that. I’d say a derby in that kind of sense. And that’s what we’re going to look to bring now. No one’s walking into this thinking it’s a friendly.”
“I feel like it’s the real culture and the real passion of football,” Dest said about the USMNT-Mexico rivalry. “The rivalries between teams in general are always amazing to see. And this is one of them as well. Playing with America against Mexico is one of the best games here. And yeah, it’s going to be a tough game. Sometimes, there will be fights, sometimes there won’t, but we play on home soil, so we got to show our passion as well to them and that we’re a great team, and they can be aggressive like that against us because we have a great brotherhood.”
The USMNT’s victory over Chile on Tuesday saw a skirmish between the two teams at the end of the match, which led to both benches clearing and racing onto the field. USMNT defender Chris Richards and Chilean attacker Leandro Hernandez were at the forefront of the fracas after Hernandez stuck a foot into Brian Schwake’s face after the debutant goalkeeper gathered a loose ball.
It was the second altercation between the USMNT and a CONMEBOL opponent in the past 12 months following the program’s scrap with Paraguay last October at Subaru Park. Alex Freeman and Gustavo Gomez were involved in a pushing match on the sidelines during a throw-in which led to both benches getting involved and Mauricio Pochettino falling on the field to try and break it up.
The USMNT-Mexico rivalry has featured several heated moments between the two squads and both Robinson and Dest expect that intensity to continue with both teams wanting to win.
“There was a glimpse of the fire that teams like that can bring at the end of the Chile game,” Robinson said. “So, we’ve been saying to the young boys that you’re going to expect that and a lot more when we play against Mexico. And obviously, the crowd can play a big factor. It’s probably going to be a lot more Mexican fans than we’d expect to be there. So, we know how much this game means to both teams, and the boys getting to experience that and their first camps is going to be interesting to see, and I hope they all embrace it, enjoy it and ready to put the fight in.”
“Obviously, these are the toughest games, and you will feel it, the crowd, the fans from both sides,” said Dest, who was sent off previously against Mexico in the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League semifinals. “The atmosphere is going to be amazing. And obviously, sometimes it can be a little bit, for players that play this as one of the first big games, they can be nervous. It’s normal. But the only thing I can help them with is just to stay calm and believe in all the abilities they trained for all these years and just show what you got because that’s what we need.”
The USMNT will seek a third-straight win before closing out their four-match window against Canada on October 6.