USMNT interim head coach Mikey Varas

uh we're going to begin with opening comments from Mikey and then we'll take your questions hi uh well first of all thank you for coming um I look forward to all the questions uh yeah I'm Mikey I'm uh the interim coach and uh the main message from me is one this is the honor of a lifetime for me anytime you get to represent your country um Demarcus knows uh better than I do anybody who's gotten to represent the crest uh it's not only the biggest honor uh of my life but it's also a responsibility um that's massive and it's one that I cherish uh three uh views going into this Camp were quite simple long-term view was we want to move the program forward we can't stand still we cannot stand still so the way that we're going to do that was having a really competitive training environment and getting back to being a frontf footed uh team in terms of uh uh building a little bit of a higher pressure nothing that we haven't done before the team is the team has uh always had this identity and it's about uh showing who we are in those in those ways the midterm view was simple we want to set up all the players as individuals for Success so they got a little extra individual attention throughout the camp and uh we want to set up for Success not only in this window um but also for the transition that's coming because it's because it is coming and then the short term is we need to uh win we The Men's National Team we understand that so we need to put on winning performances we we all know that cop America wasn't good enough we understand that we take responsibility for that there's not a single character in that room uh who isn't willing to look in the mirror and take that responsibility and that's our short-term view any questions probably a couple we'll start with Paul tenorio from the athletic hey Mikey um speaking to that idea of having short medium long-term goals there are some new faces here there are some veteran faces here how do you balance that of trying to give maybe some of the the younger less experienced players opportunities um to maybe show that they belong in the picture with the senior National Team versus the result on the weekend and and putting um maybe the more experienced lineup out on the field well we were pretty clear with the players uh at the end of the day those three views have to work uh in sync with each other you can't go just longterm and you can't just go shortterm our job is to move the program forward so players will have the opportunity to earn that opportunity but we have to win games so if they don't earn it they will not just be given it this is the Men's National Team it's the highest level for soccer and and in our country the highest standard and so the balance is providing them opportunities to come in and compete and giving them a fair shot and that's all of all they all want they want transparency and they want a fair shot at it um and then at the end of the day um it's up to them because the players are the most important actors in this uh whole equation Stephen hi Mike Steve gol from The Washington Post how have you kind of the elephant in the room has been that transition that you spoke about with the coaching um how have you handled that um that angle of it um in terms of preparing the players for something new but also maintaining that continuity and and also handling all the the rumors and speculation that go along with it yeah definitely uh well first of all you know I don't handle anything by myself um I I'm uh fortunate that I'm part of an incredible Federation right it's a team of elite people um across the board so first of all all the players we can't underestimate how much experience they have in these situations and sometimes it's uh us who have more anxiety than than they do because they have so much experience in locker room so much experience with staff's turning over secondly the federation's done a great job Matt's done a great job communicating with me keeping me up to date with everything that's happening so that I'm always able to uh communicate the most current uh information to our staff and to our players and then uh he's done a great job of communicating also with with the players so communication has been key and and and it's been a an organizational effort not a not a me effort for sure Ryan hi Mikey um obviously you know coaching on the youth level in a way is similar to coaching on an interim level and that your job is to go out there and win like you said and develop players individually but it's also to kind of lay groundwork for whatever comes next and that obviously like you said something is coming so for you how did your your experience on the Youth Level help obviously you're familiar with a few of these players and and how has this challenge been a little bit different than what you're used to uh working in that that space yeah um I I think um I've been fortunate to uh to work at every level um across all age groups um men and women um I haven't coached professional women but I've coached women from uh u5 all the way to u9 and I've coached boys uh u5 all the way up uh to the national team right now so definitely uh that experience uh has helped but at the end of the day this is the Men's National Team and so that experience helps but the most important thing is that I have support incredible people on the staff who have experiences at this level uh player Bayern all the players really committed to their country um and to making everybody proud and so it had a lot a lot less to do with me and a lot more to do with uh how everybody's working together to make this uh make this happen but yeah the midterm goal was to make to help with the transition individual attention for the player but it's also to set the next coach up for for success and that was always in our mind as well hi Mikey two questions for you first one um that emphasis on higher pressure is that based on any communication you've had with the rumored next coaching staff either directly or through people at US soccer or is that just something you want to put a stamp on for this Camp yourself and then also about you asked about new players just your thoughts on how Austin trust is integrated where he's at in his career after after the move and and potentially breaking into the team after not being in the in the Copa Squad thank you yeah so um yeah to be clear Matt Matt made it really clear to me that uh we're running this Camp so we're running this Camp based on uh the interm staff's vision we were responsible for selection um while the process of hiring the new coach was coming and the reason for the higher pressure is is not about me it's not about changing anything this has been the identity of this group I think all of us can agree were uh incredible performances leading up to the World Cup that were quite inspiring in terms of how these guys fought and pressured all over the field and um it it wasn't anything new it's not a grand idea by Mikey no this is just our identity and it's getting back to those roots um and in terms of Austin we're really excited for him in the step that he's taken you know he's got a Premier League season under his belt where it wasn't an easy season for a player right where where you're fighting every game to get points um to now moving to Celtic where he's going to be in an opposite environment where now he's the protag his team is always the protagonist and the one that has to inflict uh their will on the opponent so we're really excited where he's at he's come in with a tremendous attitude um and he's uh really excited for the opportunity to show himself also hello Mike uh Vince from the scuff podcast um I would just like to ask you you're a big you've been noted to be a big fan of mindfulness yoga um meditation uh have you Incorporated any of that with the team uh in this window and also with this big opportunity for yourself um how are you incorporating that for for you and uh yeah I got you um well listen first and foremost uh this is a uh meditation and mindfulness is a personal decision for me you know it's something that helps me and it's uh not something that I uh push on other people because these are these are personal choices so I would say the answer is yes and no the the way that uh I haven't done that is I have not had these guys do mindfulness training these guys are the best American players on the planet and they got their routines and they don't need Mikey varus telling them how to uh how to uh be better prepared the reason I have done it is because I meditate every day and I think uh the energy I bring from that and and how it's helped me on on a personal level um I think also influences people um in an indirect way sorry just canceling the staff yoga session for later uh we're going to take questions virtually and begin with Henry bnell from Yahoo thanks Michael and thanks Mike for your time I appreciate it uh just to follow up on a few things that you mentioned earlier you mentioned like Matt's been keeping you up to date on things um when exactly were you told that you would definitely be in charge of this Camp as the as the interim head coach W you're putting me on the spot for an exact day what what I can tell you is I had we had plenty we had plenty of time to uh plan for the camp so this would have been uh early early uh August um and it was really clear and the run up in terms of preparation was was incredible next be Ron blown from the Associated Press Mikey uh do you think that the players view of you in this Camp subtly would be any different if you were going to stay and be a candidate for the staff to stay on or with the likelihood of you going to San Diego do you think part of them looks should do differently I think that's a question for them um but I don't think so I I know all of these guys character and um there's no one that's bigger than the game and there's no one that's bigger than the the crest and so whoever the coach is um coming in long-term shortterm we all show up here for the badge for The Crest we show up here to represent our country and that's the biggest thing so I think uh every time you get called into the Men's National Team that's your thought process and it has nothing to do with who's standing in front of you and talking next will be Neil Davidson yes coach it's Neil Davidson from the Canadian press in Toronto it's been eight games for Canada under Jesse msh I'm wondering if you see a different Canadian team these days I think Canada had a good run in cop America um you know and we had a disappointing run and uh that's pretty much where it's left for me we know that we're showing up here with the objective of showing who we are we want to show ourselves Who We Are are but we want to show everybody else who we are and um that's all we've really been focused on we'll take two more questions and continue with Donald wi hi Mikey Donald wine from Stars and Stripes thank you for your time today you know with every Camp there's the chance to maybe try a couple of new things based on the Personnel that you have with you whether it's set pieces or counterattacks what have you with some of the new faces in Camp and some of the faces that we haven't seen in a while on this roster are there things that you were excited to try and Camp as you leaded into these couple of matches yeah the reality of the uh Men's National Team is uh we had uh one session where uh everybody was fresh and ready to go and could go really hard the entire time so you have very limited training time our objective as a staff was to provide Clarity but keep keep it simple enough and provide enough Freedom so that the players have space to make decisions all of these guys have uh incredible technical ability they all read the game at a really high level so it was less about being excited uh to implement something versus more excited about just setting conditions so that these guys can fly uh when the game comes our last question comes from Andrew Jones thanks Michael congrats Mikey on an inter rooll as another set for you want to ask first about Gio is for injury was it more just a precaution for him to send him back to dormund and not take any risk and then seeing the growth of Caleb Wy from your time with him the in the 20s to what he's done so far straber where have seen his grow from thank you yeah um Gio unfortunately um you know uh sustained an injury um in the match day minus three training and it's really unfortunate because he was flying in the training man you talk about uh showing who we are 100% just like the other guys bought in to doing that um pressing getting on the ball being who he is uh he's a top player um we decided that the best thing is for him to get back to Dortmund and just focus on his recovery because uh we're really excited about uh you know what he's going to do this season for them and then in terms of Caleb yeah I known Caleb for a while you know so uh being able to work with him with the 20s um my first Camp was with him was in salaya I think he was still a 9 um uh Atlanta United player because he didn't sign until after that camp to now seeing that he's in League one with tus you just got to be so proud of the of of the guy and uh really excited for what he what comes in the future for him