How USMNT's Diego Luna parlayed a 'life-changing' moment into a Gold Cup final he 'dreamt of as a little kid'
HOUSTON — The Luna family would gather whenever fútbol called them, but especially, invariably, for occasions like this one. Roughly once per year, parents, siblings and others would assemble around a TV for a soccer game that, as the youngest son now says, is "in my blood." The U.S. and Mexico men's national teams would meetin Ohioor Mexico City,in Chicagoor Pasadena. And back in Sunnyvale, California, the Lunas,like thousands of Mexican American families, would cook up hamburgers or enchiladas; don their favorite jerseys; and cheer or cry through a rivalry thatdivides and unites. So they would surely gather again on Sunday (7 p.m. ET, Fox/Univision), for theeighth Gold Cup final between the two North American neighborsif not for an extraordinary twist: That youngest son, Diego Luna, will be playing. Diego, 21, has clawed his way toward the core of the USMNT. With nose fractured or intact, with hair bleached blonde or hat backward, he has become the humble, gritty,tattooed, mustachioed face of the national team's rebuild. He soared into a new stratosphere of fame withtwo goals in a semifinal win over Guatemala. Now, he is "super excited" to walk into NRG Stadium and "play a game that I've dreamt of as a little kid." And he's emotional. "That's just part of being human, right?" he said Saturday. "You're gonna have these emotions. It's how you grew up. It's part of your family. It's in your blood." But no, he is not conflicted. Many immigrants and children of immigrants feel attached to both teams when their adoptive country and their family's country meet in a soccer match. Diego never was. His parents, who emigrated from Michoacán, Mexico, would celebrateEl Trigoals. Little Diego would throw fits. "Half the family would be rooting for Mexico, half the family would be for USA," he recalled. That led to "little comments" and intra-family "beef." Over time, he grew proud of his heritage. "I love being Mexican," hetold American Soccer Now in 2022. "But I grew up in the United States." He could've represented either nation's soccer team. "It's only right to play for the country that raised me to who I am," he said. His commitment never seemed to waver, even when U.S. Olympic coaches snubbed him last summer. And even when, 15 minutes into his first start under USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino, a Costa Rican elbow broke his nose and bloodied him. Luna pleaded with coaches and doctors:Let me stay in.Mere moments after returning to the field, with his nostrils plugged, he delivered an assist. Diego Luna and Brian White link up to deliver the lead!#USMNTx@VWpic.twitter.com/g0lghMaiFO — U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT)January 23, 2025 "He showed great character,"Pochettino said afterward— and "big balls." But it was more than just a viral moment. "That is what I want," Pochettinosaidmore recently. It's the "attitude, hunger, desire" that the head coach has begged for. And just as other, more prominent players seemed to lack those attributes, Luna showed, as Pochettino said, that "he is desperate to play for this shirt, for the national team. "And that is why, now, he's [at] the level that he's showing." That, in many ways, is why Diego Luna is a professional soccer player at all. Born in the Bay Area and raised by a family that "[wasn't] the wealthiest," he trekked down a circuitous path that, at times, he forged himself. He began under the tutelage of his father and older brother, with a ball at his feet five hours per day, often playing against boys who were two or three years older — and "bigger, faster, stronger." Then, at 15, he left home. He'd been feeling stuck at the San Jose Earthquakes academy. And school wasn't his thing. So he moved to Casa Grande, Arizona, where the Barça Residency Academy lives on a megacomplex of dorms, classrooms and fields in the middle of the desert. At first, he felt homesick. But he committed to the grind, and over time, his legend grew. His relentless creativity endeared him to peers. Youth national teams took notice. Some scouts, though, were skeptical. They saw a positionless attacker with an atypically stocky, barrel-chested build. "There were a lot of doubters for Diego," one of his youth coaches, Ged Quinn,told Backheeled. A torn meniscus also halted his progress. As his 18th birthday approached, many wondered whether he'd ever succeed against adults. So, at 17, he set out to prove he could. He signed with the El Paso Locomotive, a second-tier club in the USL Championship. He recentlyexplained the decision to Unfiltered Soccer: "When you go to MLS Next Pro [Major League Soccer's reserve division], you're gonna be playing against academy players, or guys that are young kids. When you go into USL Championship, that's a division of grown men. … Going into that environment, you're still competing against faster, stronger guys, and you're proving yourself." El Paso assumed he'd need time to adjust. Instead, within a couple months, Luna was starting. A year later, he was off to Real Salt Lake in MLS. That's where he pledged to become a two-way player; and developed into a senior national team prospect; and, perhaps most importantly, became a more well-rounded person. Soon after moving to Utah, Luna crafted an old-school résumé, sent it to a local coffee shop, and interviewed for a position as … a barista. He'd go work his second job after training, less to make money, more to improve his interpersonal skills, which were lacking. He'd spent so much of his adolescence with his head down on soccer. He'd built a lifelong connection with the ball; he needed to learn how to build connections with people, via things like eye contact and conversation. He also struggled mentally in his early years as a pro. And that, in 2024, is what led him to seek out a therapist. There was a lot going on in his life. (In addition to the demands of pro soccer and young adulthood, in September 2023, he became a father.) With the therapist, he worked on clearing his head — on "affirmations, breathing exercises, power poses … mindfulness, being present." It was something "I struggled with a lot," he told Apple TV. He wrote the affirmations and jotted down lessons in a notebook, which he could refer back to before games. Less than a week after he started therapy, he scored his first goal of the 2024 season. Seven months later, he was MLS Young Player of the Year. Two months after that, he was in USMNT camp. And in an otherwise meaningless B-team friendly against Costa Rica, he had a choice. His nose was busted, and he "could take the easy way, and hop off." Or, as he told Unfiltered Soccer, he could "grab [his] chance and go for it." Pochettino, Luna recently recounted, told him:"It's OK, you don't have to rush it, it's preseason." Luna asked for a chance to at least see out the first half. And he seized it. He eventually departed at halftime, went to a hospital and underwent surgery. By the time he awoke,his family and agent were calling him "Big Balls,"and, still woozy, he initially panicked:Is my hospital gown loose?Then he learned of Pochettino's comment, and the meaning behind it. He later realized: Playing through the broken nose "might've been the best decision of my life." The entire experience, Luna said last month, "was life-changing." Itearned him an A-team call-up in March. And as theUSMNT's stars slumped to two defeats, Luna was the one player Pochettino singled out in a positive light. "The desire and the hunger that he showed is what we want," Pochettino said after a 2-1 loss to Canada. "When I told [him] today, 'You are going to play,' he was red. … That is the example, for me, that we need to take." A couple months later, Luna was named to thisGold Cup roster. Reflecting on the January episode, he said: "I think it added an opportunity for me to come back into more camps and show the type of grit and the hunger that I have to play and represent for my country. Mauricio really liked that about me, and really liked the fight that I had. And I think that shows other players that that's what's needed in this team, to fight through everything." Whether or not that message has been received, Luna has continued fighting and sending it. Playing as a left-sided attacking midfielder, with "confidence" and "comfort" and the freedom "to express myself," he scored in aquarterfinal against Costa Rica, then twice in the semi against Guatemala. Afterward, Pochettino again raved: "Diego — that is all that we expect from a player." Luna himself spoke about "the grit" and "determination we've been lacking. … It's fighting to the end, every ball, every moment." He spoke about the "honor" and "privilege" of playing in these games for the USMNT. He spoke about going into them "free," with "mental space" and "mental clearness." And whereas some teammates struggledin a cauldron of Guatemalan noise, shook by the intensity of the crowd and semifinal opponent, Luna said: "I loved it. It was awesome, man. That's what every game should be like." He knows that the next one, Sunday's final, will be even more "hostile." He also knows it will unearth emotions, "a lot of emotions" — emotions that, as the current U.S. roster's only Mexican American, will be unique to him. He felt them Saturday. He assumes he'll feel them Sunday. But come midday, he said, "it's about locking in." It is a massive occasion, personally and professionally, perhaps the biggest moment of his young career. But when clocks here in Houston strike 6:06 p.m., and 70,000 people roar, he will simply have to do what he always does: "I'm gonna give 100% for the jersey that I'm wearing."
How USMNT's Diego Luna parlayed a 'life-changing' moment into a Gold Cup final he 'dreamt of as a little kid' HOUSTON — ...
