A brotherhood, a penalty, a moment in time
Extended thoughts on Christian Pulisic, Haji Wright, and the penalty handoff which led to Wright's first goal with the USA on Wednesday... A bit about the media, too.
Tuesday afternoon in Cincinnati, Christian Pulisic strolled into a gaggle of eager media personalities awaiting his arrival downtown. He sat centrally before them, ready to fend them off.
I can’t imagine many athletes love media sessions. Just imagine: the room full of prying eyes, the questions you don’t want to answer, the strangers who intend to arbitrate the contours of your character in the public square. (Like me, right now, writing this).
There’s an inherent difficulty in the relationship, evident even among the ones you don’t see sweat. Like Weston McKennie, for example, who arrived early and stayed late and re-emerged at some point to crack jokes between the whirlwind of USMNT interviews.
They’re right there when you’re high, and they’re right there when you’re low, McKennie said, discussing media scrutiny attached to success.
… He soon went back to cracking jokes.
Christian doesn’t exactly stroll up to the media cracking jokes. Relentless attention and inevitable spin has fostered a bit of distance between the star and incessant writers.
But between the almost assured “you asked me that last time”, or “It’s fine”, you do get bits of laughter and levity from him. And when you do see him strike sincere and show emotion, you know it’s from the heart.
That’s what happened Tuesday when somebody asked Pulisic about Haji Wright. “Yeah, me and Haji”, he said, thinking back, affection audible, “that was the original pair”.
The United States was up 2-0 in the 64th minute against Morocco when Pulisic drew a foul in the box. You could feel the deflation of Morocco’s fans. You could see the disarray of their team. And in between that frantic energy, you could see Christian Pulisic hand Haji Wright the ball.
The initial handoff was fleeting. Pulisic picked up the ball (De facto penalty guy, team captain, presumed man of that moment) and placed it firmly in Haji Wright’s hands. Almost immediately, Pulisic took the ball back and walked to the line.
Up in the press box, Morocco media shook their head in resignation, mumbling something about their coach. Their team argued an ineffective case to the ref down below. And Pulisic waited calmly with the ball.
As I watched, I wondered, is he going to give it back to Wright?
Pulisic famously pulled a similar decoy against Panama in Orlando. (That time it went in reverse.) Jesus Ferreira took the ball, stood ready to take a penalty, then handed it to Pulisic to put away.
I had a feeling…
Sure enough, when the dust settled and the box cleared, Pulisic turned and bounced the ball back to his old teammate. Wright stepped to the spot. With a stutter and a pause, he found the back of the net, notching his first goal in his first cap with the USA.
I had the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with Haji Wright the night before the match. I’ll post this interview shortly, but a few things right now stick out:
I asked Haji how it felt coming into camp. He indicated it felt normal, he felt welcome, he knew everyone. He was back with his friends.
We sorted through the phases of his career: the promise he’d shown, the attention he attracted, moving to Germany (Where McKennie and nearby Pulisic provided a sense of home), migrating to Holland, then Denmark, finding his way to Turkey, getting that call from Gregg.
Through so many of those phases, there were familiar names who’d done similar things at similar times, but found their way to bigger clubs and the national team much earlier.
“Not all paths are linear”, he said.
I also asked what he thinks makes a successful striker, and what he brings to that role. He emphasized confidence. And sometimes, he said, you have to be a little selfish.
After the game Wright spoke to media in the mixed zone, saying that when the penalty was called he asked Pulisic for the ball. And as we know, Pulisic gave it to him no question.
The elation from Wright’s old teammates when he scored reverberated around the fanbase and through the stadium, speaking to an emotion bigger than just a goal.
Gregg Berhalter later praised the decision. It speaks to the type of leadership there is on this team, he said, elaborating that Christian “desperately” wants to see Haji succeed.
As Berhalter spoke on, I was struck once more by the indisputable strength of this team. This is a brotherhood. It’s self evident. It’s growing stronger. And one member of that brotherhood- following his non-linear journey to that evening in Cincinnati- may have found his way back, just in time for the biggest stage of their life.
Time will tell if Wright can prove himself and be on his way to Qatar. He showed interesting capabilities against Morocco. It will be exciting to see more.
But wrapped up in the emotion of that moment, it was impossible not to imagine the path possible. Should Haji Wright prove to be a striker USMNT rely on in a World Cup, the winding road that brought him back will prove all the more poignant when it was his old friend and teammate, Christian Pulisic, that threw him the ball to go get his goal.
As I took in the penalty exchange, Haji’s cool finish, and the reaction from all around, I had a distinct rare feeling we may have just witnessed a pivotal moment in time for the brotherhood.