The United States opened their 2026 World Cup campaign in historic fashion, breaking multiple records with a 4-1 win over Paraguay, but it was something on the sidelines that made Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic emotional.
The duo are working alongside Alexi Lalas on Fox Sports throughout the World Cup and they finally realised how much this tournament means to American soccer fans before a ball was even kicked.
The USA struck early through a Damián Bobadilla own goal, Balogun scored twice before half-time, and Reyna then wrapped up the 4-1 victory in stoppage time.
Thierry Henry reveals how Alexi Lalas ‘moved him’ at USA vs Paraguay
Speaking today on Fox Sports, Henry said: “I want to talk about something that moved me. The national anthem was outstanding, the fans were outstanding.
“The team although I’m not American, I could relate to how the team played, when you see a team fighting like that for every single ball and they have an idea of how to go forward, it was just outstanding.
“But one thing that was as good as the performance, the way it moved me, was this man.”
Pointing to Lalas, Henry then asked his fellow pundit if it was ok to share what he saw, to which Lalas agreed.
He continued: “When I looked at him during the national anthem, how he cried, and how passionate he was about singing the national anthem.
“I was looking at you from the side, at the beginning I didn’t know where you were going with it, then I realised how important it was for you guys and how important it is for you. That was actually outstanding, I’ll always remember that.”
Then Ibrahimovic added: “You also made me emotional, and that doesn’t happen every day.”
Caught off guard, Lalas replied: “Thank you, thank you, it was a fun night!”
The USMNT will now face Turkey in their second Group D fixture; a win would all but confirm their progression to the knockout stages.
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