Real Salt Lake and U.S. midfielder Diego Luna said the rupture of his nose suffered in a friendly against Costa Rica in January was a "life-changing" event for him.

The injury cut Luna's contribution that night, but he provided assists for Brian White in that game, as well as an assistant who flowed down the blood from the elbow to the nose with the elbow to the nose, sent a message to our manager, Mauricio Pochettino, who was willing to make an impact with the national team.

This upward trajectory is Luna hopes to continue in the current training camp ahead of the two friendships against Türkiye and Switzerland next week and the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup.

"I think what I've had for me is that I can say what's going on in life...I think it's an opportunity for me to go back to more camps and show the kind of perseverance and hunger that I have to play for my country and represent," Luna told reporters on Tuesday. "And I think, yes, it shows that Mauricio really likes me and really likes my fights."

“And I think it shows other players what this team needs and fights in everything.”

Luna has quickly improved the U.S. player pool since the beginning of the year, continuing to perform at the club-level RSL, scoring eight goals and adding four assists. Luna added that Pochettino's belief in him allowed him to play clearly on the court and play to his strengths.

“I think confidence keeps me comfortable and allows me to express myself on the court,” Luna said. “And I think one of the biggest things is that there is no extra pressure when you get from the coaching staff or their thoughts or what they expect from you.

“It’s obvious what they want, what they expect, and let me enjoy myself when I’m out of town.”

In terms of recent USMNT performances, the grit shown by Luna has been a rare sight. Last March, the United States lost to Panama and Canada in the CONCACAF National League, looking boring in both games. Last summer, the United States also failed to play the knockout round América. Defender Walker Zimmerman said the team is trying to address the trend.

"I think some of our performances have been underperformed over the past year to 18 months," he said. "It's something we're as players and we're obviously not happy with the focus of this camp, and that's a point."

Zimmerman added that the entire 27-player roster knows that with the 2026 World Cup distance, more than a year away, there are many dangers in this camp and beyond.

“I think it starts every day with our environment,” he said. “Ultimately, I think if you ask anyone to write down 26 names for next year, then people will objectively say there are a lot of attractions, and we as players have to recognize that and take this opportunity, our daily training, every training camp, we are going to be asked to try and be one of those attractions.

“When you set that tone individually and set that goal for yourself, now you have everyone in the camp trying to do the same thing, it will go up and you want us to be more competitive and richer on the field.

"It starts with training, it starts with interactions between us in teams against opponents. It's just a huge challenge, and that's what we have to do to make sure we keep improving."

The U.S. played Türkiye in East Hartford, Connecticut on Saturday before another friendly against Switzerland in Nashville, Tennessee on June 10. It begins in the Golden Cup against Trinidad and Tobago on June 15 in San Jose, California.