Folarin Balogun has run the gamut over the last 48 hours.
The United States striker said he's experienced a wide range emotions after his World Cup red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina and the subsequent one-game ban that's ruled him out of the last-16 matchup with Belgium.
"It's been a roller coaster," Balogun told reporters Friday, including Jeff Carlisle of ESPN.
He added, "I've been upset. I've been happy. It's been surreal, to be honest. But for me, I think it was just important to stay calm. I never want to react out of anger and out of emotion. There's still lots of people we're inspiring, little kids, boys and girls who are watching, and we have to show them the correct way to handle things even when you think it's unjust."
The 25-year-old opened the scoring in his team's round-of-32 win over Bosnia before being shown a straight red card for a foul on Tarik Muharemovic.
Balogun believes the incident, which involved a VAR review, only warranted a yellow card.
"If you played the game, you would understand there's scenarios that you simply can't avoid, and it has to be taken into context when it's being reviewed," the USMNT star said.
"I felt it wasn't on this occasion, but I think, as you all saw, there's nowhere else to put your leg. It's going to be unavoidable. So yeah, I've seen many different opinions and takes, but for me personally, I think a yellow card would have been fair. It's something that's happened, so we have to move forward, and I have to accept it."
U.S. head coach Mauricio Pochettino stood by his player after the match, claiming that the incident was "never" worthy of a red card.
But Balogun is now focused on looking ahead, saying he simply wants to "support the boys" going into Monday's contest versus Belgium.
Should the U.S. win that game in Seattle and advance, Balogun will be eligible to return to the lineup in the quarterfinals.
