Clint Dempsey, the United States men’s national team’s joint all-time leading scorer, has delivered a sharp rebuke to Canada coach Jesse Marsch over comments about American players.
Marsch sparked controversy this week by suggesting that US players sometimes needed to be persuaded to sing the Star-Spangled Banner before matches.
Speaking ahead of Canada’s World Cup opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Marsch praised his own players’ patriotism while drawing an unflattering comparison to his time working with the USMNT.
Marsch served as an assistant for the US men’s national team from 2010 to 2011, including at the World Cup in South Africa, before eventually becoming Canada’s head coach.
“In the US sometimes we had to beg players to sing the national anthem,” Marsch said on Thursday. “These guys belt it out to the top of their lungs because they want to show the country how proud they are to be here, to be Canadians and to represent what Canada is.”
Canada drew 1-1 with Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday in Toronto, as Marsch’s comments continued to generate strong reactions across the football world.
Dempsey, who is working at the World Cup as an analyst for Fox Sports, responded with barely concealed contempt during a pregame broadcast appearance.
“He really said that?” Dempsey said. “Man, I can’t take this guy too seriously. It was an honor for me growing up and represent my country. When the national anthem happened, I wasn’t someone who normally would sing. I put my hand over my heart, and I’d pray to the good man upstairs. I’m someone who’s bled for this country. I broke my nose playing for this country. I’ve come back from two heart procedures and played for this country.”
Dempsey went further, invoking a familiar phrase to drive his message home with full force.
“I’m not going to take advice from someone who switched to the other side and is singing another country’s national anthem. And as my boy [Thierry Henry] would say, stay in your own lane. It looks like he’s in a dang moped, so worry about your own team.”
Dempsey is tied with Landon Donovan at the top of the USMNT’s all-time goals list, with both men having scored 57 goals for their country.
He played for the US at the 2010 World Cup, the very tournament during which Marsch was serving as an assistant under head coach Bob Bradley.
Marsch has previously said he “wasn’t treated very well” by US Soccer during its managerial search following the 2022 World Cup, when he was considered a frontrunner for the head coaching position.
The US Soccer Federation ultimately chose to rehire Gregg Berhalter after his initial contract expired, leaving Marsch to eventually take the Canada job instead.
The United States opened their World Cup campaign against Paraguay in Los Angeles on Friday, while Canada’s next fixture sees them face Qatar on 18 June.
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