'We let them down' - USMNT let golden World Cup moment slip as Belgium expose gap between Americans and true contenders in Round of 16 exit

Virtually every USMNT player said some version of the same thing: something was wrong.

Adams said it was the little things: the second balls, the misplaced passes, the little moments where players were positioned a few feet from where they needed to be. There were big things, too: the bouncing ball on the first goal, the backpost header on the second, Matt Freese's howler for the third, and Chris Richards' giveaway on the fourth.

In the end, this wasn't a game defined by big things or little things because all of those things, no matter the size, went wrong.

"I don't think we had a good game today collectively," Folarin Balogun said. "We played well in the other games. It was very intense. We were able to generate energy with the crowd, and today we didn't give the crowd a lot to cheer for. That's the most disappointing thing, and that's the part that hurts the most for me personally."

As Balogun said, there were few moments for the USMNT-centric crowd to get into it. They could only watch on as their heroes failed to meet the moment in the ways they did against Paraguay, Australia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Belgium are not those teams, though. They're much better.

Maybe it is a question of talent, then. Maybe this USMNT, a group filled with players from Europe's top leagues, is not quite as good as everyone thinks. Maybe they are not as good as they think. That would explain why the one-two passes were never replaced by anything more pragmatic, and why, when Plan A failed, the team looked scared.

After weeks of talking about how relaxed this team was, there was nothing relaxed about this performance. It was frantic, chaotic and messy. There was no composure, no ease. Facing a true top-tier opponent for the first time this summer, the U.S. was not allowed to run the game. When that happened, they panicked.

"I think we just need to keep being who we are regardless of the opponent," midfielder Sebastian Berhalter said. "Keep being the high-pressing dynamic, the American way, team that doesn't give up, a team that's aggressive. Maybe we lost sight of that a little bit tonight. They obviously were the better team, and we just need to be our DNA and be who we are as Americans."

This was not that, for whatever reason. Those on the outside can speculate. Maybe the U.S. was fazed by an opponent that never feared its press. Maybe it was overawed by the occasion, the massive TV numbers, the record audience or the pressure that came with a chance to truly change things. In the end, this game may have changed things, but not for the better.

It was also played under something of a dark cloud, one that cast the USMNT less as a lovable host-nation story and more as this World Cup's politically favored team. Did that matter?

The build-up to the game was not centered on how the USMNT could hurt Belgium, or which tactical battles would decide who went through. No, the face of the pregame conversation was not even a player. It was the President of the United States.

On Monday, 24 hours after FIFA suspended Balogun's automatic one-game ban, Donald Trump went on TV and claimed victory. He said he had spoken with Gianni Infantino and believed justice had been served by Balogun's return. Almost instantly, the conversation shifted to what the President's words meant, and, more importantly, what they meant for FIFA.

After spending the summer as a feel-good story, the USMNT suddenly found itself at the center of something much messier. To the outside world, they were the team that may or may not have benefited from political intervention. They were the team accused of skirting justice and bending rules. For some, maybe this felt like karma. For the players, it was simply painful.

The USMNT players insisted they were not impacted by becoming international news before the biggest game of their lives. Surely, though, they knew the noise was there.

"No pressure, no moment, didn't feel any different," captain Tim Ream said. "There was no extra weight or anything like that."

Pochettino said the same. The USMNT did not lose because the President gave a press conference Monday morning. They lost because they played poorly against Belgium on Monday night.

“We were not good enough today,” Pochettino said. “We don’t need to find another excuse. Belgium were better than us. That’s it. It’s very clear. It was really tough from the beginning. We didn’t show what normally the team will show - and that is the reality.

“Maybe the explanation is so easy - it wasn’t our day, in quality and individually. Of course, the principal responsible is myself and yes, we need to see and to check what we did, because it wasn’t the performance or way that normally we play.”

In many ways, it does not matter why it went wrong. What matters is that it did, and what that means going forward.

There was so much hope that this team could be different. After a brilliant start to the World Cup, there was a belief that there was progress But, for those the USMNT was desperate to convince, this didn't change much.

"Today we were not the same team that during the tournament showed quality," Pochettino said.

This did not show the casual that there was a reason to be a die-hard. This did not show progress or growth; it showed more of the same, and perhaps even worse than that.

"This was a moment to have the opportunity to advance and really try and do something special. We fell short," Adams said.

Three-and-a-half years ago, a young USMNT lost 3-1 to the Netherlands in Qatar. This time, on home soil, they lost 4-1 to Belgium in the same round. How could that be progress?

"It's disappointing," Christian Pulisic said. "I didn't quite have the moments I was hoping to try to help us to really push and get over this next step of beating a really good team, so I'm disappointed with myself, of course."

"It's two cycles, and you fell short again in those big moments and in those big games," Berhalter said. "It's disappointing."

The reaction will be harsh, and some of it will be predictable. Outside the U.S., there will be those who see this as proof that American soccer is only capable of reaching a certain level. At home, especially among those who only tune in during World Cups, the feeling will likely be more of the same. On Monday night, the USMNT gave them little evidence to the contrary. Whatever progress has been made, it was hard to see in a game watched by approximately 40 million Americans.

"There's so much support, so many people rooting for us, little kids around the U.S. looking up to us," Berhalter said, "and we fell short, and it's disappointing, but I know we'll be back."

Added goalkeeper Matt Freese: "This hurts. This moment hurts. This moment hurts more and stings more than probably any other moment in my life, but I know that this is a step along a longer journey. I know that there are big things to come from this federation and from this group, and this is one step. It's a painful step, but it is a step regardless."

Who knows what that next step is and who will be along for it? Will the public at large tune in like this again? Will there ever be an opportunity quite like this one?

Before turning that page, though, the USMNT will spend some time reflecting, both on this moment and what it means going forward.

There was an attempt to reflect on the good moments. The reality is that there were plenty. No one will forget where they were for the USMNT's blitz of Paraguay or that first rendition of "Country Roads". Maybe those feelings will remain and remain stronger than the feelings of disappointment. Maybe they won't, though.

"We won the game against Bosnia," Pulisic said. "We can, for sure, be proud, but I just think we want to have higher hopes than that. We want to be able to go and compete with some of the best in the world, and we just still have that next step to climb, but we are close."

Not close enough. The loss to Belgium showed that. There's still a gap to be made up, and there are so few chances to make that up. There are even fewer opportunities to show both the country and the world that it's happened.

As Balo said, there's boys and girls who were watching and being inspired," Ream said. "I'm sure people will say, 'Oh, now it's going to die down', but if you look at what we've done, I don't think the conversation should die down.

"I think it, it should be about how incredible this journey has been with this group. How can we keep the conversation going? How can we continue to inspire them now that the tournament is over?"

The best way to inspire the next generation is by performing at World Cups. Whether this USMNT did that, due to Monday's result, is now up for debate. And so the wait begins for the next opportunity. That wait will be agonizing, particularly knowing how long everyone waited for this particular chance.

"We have to wait four years again to be in this position," Balogun said, "which is hurtful again."