Stephen A Smith has gone all in on his criticism of President Donald Trump for the debacle involving him and Folarin Balogun 's suspension.
Monday saw the USMNT eliminated from the World Cup following an emphatic victory for Belgium in Seattle.
What had been an extremely positive tournament for the United States was thrown into controversy over the weekend.
Mauricio Pochettino's star striker Balogun suddenly had his red card suspension lifted by FIFA following an intervention from Trump.
The unprecedented development sparked controversy across the globe, as Trump later thanked FIFA for lifting Balogun's ban .
With the USMNT now out of the competition, Smith has torn into the President of the United States for his involvement in the saga.
Photo by Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty Images
The journey is over for the USMNT and there are fans across the world who were delighted to see Belgium go through to the quarter-finals.
Trump's involvement in Balogun's suspension reverse angered Belgium , who appealed the decision in the hours leading up to kick-off.
"The president of the United States has no business involving himself in such a situation. The president of any nation shouldn't involve themselves in that fashion," Smith said on his YouTube channel.
"It's one thing to give your comments. It's one thing to speak your piece. It's another thing entirely to pick up the phone and call Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA since February 2016, to have that kind of influence. He [Infantino] has this fascination with President Trump, and he was more than willing to appease the President of the United States.
"Well, you can't play favorites."
Trump clearly thought he was doing the USMNT a favor by making Balogun eligible for the game on Monday in the Pacific Northwest.
What it actually did was turn many across the globe against Pochettino's men, given the controversial nature of his involvement in the suspension being lifted.
Read more:
