USMNT World Cup notebook: Christian Pulisic returns to training, Folarin Balogun eyes Golden Boot race and U.S. Soccer explains ‘Country Roads’ anthem

Through two games, Folarin Balogun finds himself in the middle of a Golden Boot race. So, when he turns on his TV and sees stars like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland matching or even exceeding his goal total, he has one reaction.

"I think it's annoying," he said with a laugh.

Balogun, like everyone else, has been watching those stars light up the World Cup and, despite the annoyance, he's been enjoying it, too. He earmarked Felix Nmecha of Germany as someone who has impressed him. The bigger names, of course, have, too.

"Seeing players like Messi, Mbappe, and Haaland - they're so inevitable," he said. "They're scoring a goal a game, sometimes more so. For me, it's just about trying to get to that level, to be inevitable as well, to be consistent. I'm sure I've got the potential in me to do that."

Through two games, Balogun has done that. The USMNT striker scored twice against Turkey and then helped set up the opener against Australia, only for the ball to be turned in by Cameron Burgess for an own goal.

Unfortunately for Balogun, his pursuit of the Golden Boot may take a hit. The USMNT striker is on a yellow card, which means it would be a huge risk to play him in a dead-rubber clash with Turkey. So, as much as he'd like to play, the striker understands why plenty wouldn't want him to.

"I want to play every game," he said. "That's what got me to where I am: being available. I think the most important thing for a professional athlete in any sport is to be available, and I'm no different, so of course I want to play, but it's also important to be smart. I wouldn't want to pick up a yellow card and miss the Round of 32."

The Seattle crowd singing "Country Roads" is perhaps the defining USMNT moment of this World Cup. As it turns out, it wasn't a coincidence.

Prior to the tournament, FIFA asked teams to submit playlists including warm-up, goal celebration, and victory songs. As part of that, U.S. Soccer consulted with players and representatives within the federation. The aim? Choose songs that would be great for sing-alongs and representative of America. Among the list of postgame songs were three: "Livin' on a Prayer", "Sweet Caroline," and, of course, "Take Me Home, Country Roads".

Ultimately, England's use of "Sweet Caroline" put a damper on that option, while "Livin' on a Prayer" was in Seattle during the game. According to U.S. Soccer, it was former U.S. Soccer employee and current FIFA executive Amy Hopfinger who made the call to go with Country Roads in the aftermath of the USMNT win.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Speaking to reporters after scoring against Australia, Alex Freeman detailed his celebration thought process. He saw his teammates coming and knew he had to run, particularly after seeing how the USMNT subs swarmed goalscorers against Paraguay.

For those who have been a part of the celebrations, those moments have been special. There's a reason the USMNT's subs keep sprinting to celebrate in those moments: it's genuine excitement, both for the goal and the goalscorer. Freeman did his best to get away, and he did so better than most, but his USMNT teammates did eventually catch up to him in the corner.

"It's all vibes," Zendejas said. "It's happy excitement. [Freeman] ended up running the wrong way; he should have run the other way, but we were all ready on the sideline.

"After the goal was confirmed, we were ready to chase him down, but he's just too fast."

Christian Pulisic was all smiles after the Australia game. FOX cameras caught him smiling ear to ear as he sang with the crowd and celebrated a job well done by his teammates.

He was all smiles on Monday, too. In the 15 minutes of training witnessed by the media, the American star trained with his teammates, taking part in drills with and without the ball. The week leading up to the Australia game, though, was difficult, as Pulisic was at the center of a "will he or won't he" injury crisis. It went right down to the wire, USMNT manager Mauricio Pochettino said, but, ultimately, Pulisic wasn't quite ready.

Zendejas has known Pulisic for years, having grown up with the AC Milan winger during their time with the youth national teams. Several members of the USMNT said Zendejas has been someone that Pulisic has always leaned on, and that happened again during last week's buildup.

"Yeah, it's a tough situation when you're going through a small little knock or injury during an important tournament," Zendejas said, "but I think it's not so much talk about the injuries or talk about the moment he's going through. If so, you talk to him and talk about other subjects or about other stuff to try to get his mind off of it.

"Him and I get along, and we have other guys too. We have a little group, and I'm sure that helps him out a lot: just having someone that he could talk to and just be there for him."

With Paraguay's win over Turkey on Friday night, the USMNT learned part of their path. They officially won the group with that result, which means a trip to Santa Clara is upcoming for the Round of 32.

As for opponents or what comes after, Balogun says he has no clue. Admittedly, it's tough to work out all of the permutations, particularly with third-place teams.

"I'm sure some of the staff or some of the other players might be looking at that, but to be honest, I don't really understand," he said. "Mathematically, if we get certain points, who we play, all of that stuff - whoever I get told to prepare for, I'm just going to go out there and prepare for that. I just focus on the present games."

Due to the USMNT's situation, though, rotation is expected. Balogun, as one of four players on a yellow card, is a primary candidate to sit out against Turkey alongside Antonee Robinson, Chris Richards, and Tyler Adams. Pulisic, meanwhile, could also perhaps benefit from another week of recovery before the knockouts begin.

Could that open the door for someone like, say, Zendejas? The Club America star is one of five outfield players yet to enter a match at this World Cup, which means the Turkey game could be his big moment.

"I've been training hard, been waiting for the opportunity, but I'm sure it'll come," he said. "That's obviously a coach's decision, and something I've got to respect. I've always said it all depends on how I'm on the field. I'm working hard, having fun, really enjoying this dream that I'm living right now, so I couldn't ask for more, man. I'm happy to be here with the guys, with the group. I'm just super grateful."

It's hard to fully contextualize or measure the impact made by the USMNT's first two games. You can measure views, social media interactions or coverage, but that doesn't fully encapsulate what American fans are feeling while following the USMNT this summer.

That's how the players feel, at least. They have been doing whatever they can, though, to take it all in.

"I've been trying to comprehend it, but I think America's such a big country," Balogun said. "It's difficult, but Weston's been showing me videos because I sit next to him on the plane. He's been showing me videos of fans in different parts, watching the games on some big screens, in bars and stuff. Every time we score, they're celebrating in different places.

"I think it's not something any of us can really comprehend because we're in it, but I think once we're out of it, and, I don't know, kind of getting on with our daily lives, I think we'll be able to see the impact we've made. It's a beautiful thing."

As for Zendejas, he just has a message to those following along: keep following as the ride, hopefully, continues on through the summer.

"Just keep on believing in this group," he said. "We have so many good players that are on the field, on the bench. It's just a team that's always willing to fight, to keep going and try to get a positive result all the time."