Weston McKennie defends USMNT teammates from criticism

A day after Landon Donovan lambasted members of the U.S. men's national team who decided to skip this summer's friendlies and CONCACAF Gold Cup, midfielder Weston McKennie came to the defense of his teammates.

Christian Pulisic, Antonee Robinson and Yunus Musah are among the USMNT mainstays who aren't with the team, ostensibly to rest after the European season. The national squad is also missing numerous other players due to injury or involvement in the upcoming Club World Cup, where McKennie is set to compete with Juventus.

While lauding Cristiano Ronaldo for helping lead Portugal to the UEFA Nations League championship Sunday with a win over Spain, Donovan took a shot at the current USMNT absentees.

"This is what it means to represent your country," Donovan said, speaking of Ronaldo, on the Fox broadcast. "This is what it means. And if you don't want to take this as a professional soccer player, as someone who gets the opportunity to wear that jersey and take it seriously and responsibly, then don't come in. This is what it means.

"(Ronaldo is) 40 years old. He's played a long-ass season. He's tired. He's out there grinding. Hurt himself in the process, and I can't help but think about some of our guys on vacation, not wanting to play in the Gold Cup. It's pissing me off."

The U.S. team just took a third consecutive loss, falling 2-1 to Turkey on Saturday in a friendly at East Hartford, Conn.

McKennie was asked about Donovan's comments by USA Today Sports on Monday in Italy, where he is in training with Juventus.

"Obviously, none of us take for granted playing for the national team," McKennie told USA Today. "None of us want to lose games. All of us want to compete."

McKennie added about Donovan's remarks, "No names were named. Coming off a long season, a stressful season, obviously, some players feel a different way about it, and some players feel another way. But the comments are comments. Everyone has their own opinions, and that's life, and that's football.

"Obviously, like I said before, none of us take for granted that we get to represent a national team because it's one of the biggest honors that we can have in the sport of football. ...

"So, any chance that we get, we want to play. But obviously, if you don't feel like your body is in the right condition, and you don't feel like your body is in the best form or shape or whatever, to be able to do that at 100 percent, and you feel like you're risking injury, then it's better to let someone else go in that is completely 100 percent."

Also on Monday, Mark Pulisic, Christian's father, posted on Instagram a ChatGPT summary of the time when Donovan took a sabbatical from playing in 2012-13 "because he was feeling both physically and mentally exhausted after years of intense competition and the pressure that comes with being a top athlete."

Christian Pulisic "liked" his father's post.

--Field Level Media