Ricardo Pepi, a 19 year old that was left off of the United States’ World Cup roster, was seen in a Dutch nightclub with a Netherlands jersey on after their win that knocked out the U.S. from the tournament. The Netherlands won against the U.S., 3-1, in the round of 16 to move on to the quarterfinals. Pepi has been playing in the Netherlands for FC Groningen in the Eredivisie league since he got loaned by the German Bundesliga’s FC Augsburg, as he got left off of the roster by head coach Gregg Berhalter.
Despite being left off the roster, Pepi performed well during the World Cup qualifiers, scoring three goals in ten matches with the U.S.. However, Berhalter stated, “The Dutch league, I think it’s a great league, but it doesn’t bring the same physicality that the Premier League or the [EFL] Championship brings. That was something that went into the decision.” When Pepi learned of his absence from the World Cup roster, he admitted to being “disappointed.”
Pepi went on to add, “Disappointing because I felt like I gave myself the best opportunities to be in the World Cup roster, I felt like I had a chance, but also not disappointing at the same time because, like I said, I did my thing, I went out there, I played many minutes, I scored my goals. I’m really happy with that situation. At the end of the day, it’s a coach’s decision that I can’t control. I feel like once [Berhalter] told me, I wanted to flip the page as soon as possible and just focus on the game now. I can’t keep thinking about why I didn’t make it or why I did.”
Pepi had previously played for FC Dallas as a homegrown product prior to going to Augsburg on a reported $20 million transfer. He was also named the MLS Young Player of the Year in 2021 after accumulating 13 goals and two assists in 31 matches that year.
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