ARLINGTON, Tex. — In the past week, Haji Wright has:
From there, Wright and his teammates took full advantage of the demoralized Reggae Boyz to dodge a major scare and continue their quest for a third consecutive Nations League trophy.
“It was about creating enough chances and opportunities for us to score a [tying] goal,” said the Los Angeles native, who entered in the 63rd minute. “And when we scored, we kind of knew we’d continue applying pressure and hopefully get a second and third, if not go to penalties and winning.”
Wright is with the U.S. squad for the first time since the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he scored in the round-of-16 defeat to the Netherlands. Despite his scoring production for clubs in Turkey and England the past two seasons, he had not received an invitation from Berhalter.
For Coventry, Wright has posted 13 goals in league play and two in the FA Cup, including the winner at Wolverhampton on Saturday. Aside from the FA Cup run, Coventry is in contention for Premier League promotion.
“I didn’t really let it get to me when I wasn’t in the initial [U.S.] squad,” he said. “I just tried to keep performing. I wanted to put myself in position where I could be called in the future. Lucky for me, I was able to get into the squad this time.”
Berhalter had named strikers Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi and Josh Sargent to the original 23-man list. Before the squad was announced last week, Berhalter called Wright.
“You have to shake off the disappointment of not getting selected in the first place,” Berhalter said after Thursday’s victory. “Then you come into the group and not feel like you’re a second choice. When I called him and told him he wasn’t in the team, the message was: ‘Listen: You’re doing everything right. You can’t do anything more. So just be patient.’ ”
Then Sargent hurt his ankle over the weekend, and Berhalter called Wright again, this time to extend an invitation. That would mean, however, withdrawing from a vacation his girlfriend planned and his family and agent were attending.
Berhalter said he told Wright: “I know it’s a lot of information right now for you to handle. Just think about it for 10 minutes and give me a call back.”
Berhalter added: “And he called me back and said, ‘I’m in.’ When I heard that, it really shows what type of guy he is, what kind of character he is.”
The vacation commenced for the others. Wright made plans for Dallas.
“For him to come in and put in a performance like that,” forward Christian Pulisic said, “it was really special.”
Midfielder Tyler Adams said: “Being a late call-up is never ideal because he’s probably frustrated at first. And then when he gets called in, he’s probably like, ‘I should have been there to begin with.’ ”
Adams, who plays for Premier League club Bournemouth, has admired Wright’s work in England.
“What he’s done with Coventry has been unbelievable,” Adams said. “He’s a player that’s developed a lot, even since the World Cup. You can see even today, he was just clinical with every chance he got. It’s good to see him like that because I played with him for a long time [on U.S. youth teams] and I know the talent that he has.”
Wright was the beneficiary of Gio Reyna’s immaculate footwork and passing. In the 96th minute, Wright collected Reyna’s through ball in stride, warded off a defender and slotted an angled shot into the far corner. Later, Reyna found Wright in tight space for another clinical finish and his fourth international goal.
Reyna, 21, arrived at camp amid a trying period in his club career. After falling out of favor with Germany’s Borussia Dortmund, he has played sparingly since his move to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League in January.
“For us, it’s about supporting him through the difficult times of adapting to the Premier League, but his quality is unquestionable,” Berhalter said. “He has that quality not many players have, and it’s clear he deserves to play.”
Reyna and Berhalter also seem to have put their differences behind them — a saga that began at the World Cup and also involved Reyna’s parents.
On Thursday, Reyna spoke to reporters following a U.S. match for the first time since the World Cup.
“What happened happened,” he said of the friction with Berhalter, “but I think both of us are so far past it and just so focused on the group that it’s not even an issue at all anymore.”
As for the team’s resolve, “maybe a few years ago, we wouldn’t have been able to come out with a win, but a lot of us have grown up over the last few years.”
