Folarin Balogun revealed on Tuesday that the lifting of his World Cup red card — following an intervention by President Donald Trump created additional pressure on the U.S. team.
In an interview with CBS, Balogun said he was definitely in shock after being sent off for stepping on the foot of a Bosnia-Herzegovina defender during the U.S.’s 2-0 group-stage victory. When something is not intentional, it should never be a red card,” he stated.
Just days before the U.S.’s last-16 match against Belgium, FIFA announced the suspension of Balogun’s red card, allowing him to play. President Trump later acknowledged that he had contacted FIFA president Gianni Infantino to request a review of the decision.
Despite Balogun’s return to the lineup, the U.S. fell 4-1 to Belgium, with Balogun making little impact. It was just an unfortunate situation, and it put a lot more pressure on us than we needed, said the 25-year-old. At first, I was happy to be back with the team, but as I reflected on it, I realized it would spark a lot of controversy.
Balogun added that the situation made his teammates nervous. “The closer it got to the game, I tried to focus as best I could. It was difficult, with a lot of outside noise, and that’s hard to avoid,” he said.
