Aaron Herrera & Guatemala ride "incredibly special" Gold Cup run

Aaron Herrera tries to keep it together after every match. There are joys. There are frustrations. But any smart soccer player knows to never get too high or too low.

Sunday night, the D.C. United defender had to make an exception.

As Guatemala celebrated a penalty shootout victory over Canada to reach the Concacaf Gold Cup semifinals for the first time in 29 years, manager Luis Fernando Tena let go of some tears. Members of his staff and playing roster did the same, Herrera included.

“I don’t really ever get emotional after wins or losses. It’s pretty stoic,” Herrera told MLSsoccer.com ahead of their Wednesday semifinal vs. the United States at St. Louis CITY SC’s Energizer Park (7 pm ET | FS1, Univision, TUDN).

“But I think it’s probably, for the first time ever, I did get a little emotional after the game. The eyes were tearing up a little bit. It was just an incredibly special moment.”

Highs and lows

The upset result was only improved by the number of Guatemala fans in the stands at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Chapines’ supporters have turned out in droves for the Gold Cup, as was expected for group games in Los Angeles, Austin and Houston – areas with large Guatemalan populations. The team was surprised to see so many light blue shirts in Minnesota for the quarterfinals, making Guatemala feel like the home team.

Herrera feeds off that passion, though he’s also experienced some of the negative sides. Opting to stay with D.C. United last March, instead of traveling for Guatemala’s Gold Cup qualifiers against Guyana, Herrera posted a statement on Instagram explaining he hoped to avoid injury by missing the long trips and the opening match on a turf surface.

At the time, he received criticism for putting his club over his country. This summer, he’s been vindicated.

“If you’re an athlete and can’t handle the negative side of things, it’s going to be a rough career,” Herrera said. “I knew when I put out the statement that I wasn’t going to be at the games because I was battling some chronic issues, it probably wasn’t going to be taken well. But as an athlete, you’ve got to take those things and do what’s best for you in the moment.

“I was really struggling with some things, and taking that time led us here in the sense that going into this tournament, my body felt great, the best it felt all year.”

Guatemala's tone-setter

It has shown.

While Los Chapines have several standouts during their run to the final four of the continental championship, Herrera certainly has drawn the eye. The TUDN commentary team intoned “El MVP guatemalteco!” as he stepped up to take his penalty kick in Sunday’s shootout – true, but perhaps a surprise for a fullback.

In addition to converting his penalty past Minnesota United goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair, Herrera completed a dozen passes into the final third, registered seven clearances – five with his head, critical for the undersized Guatemala back line – and cleared an effort off the line.

The stats and actions matter, but Herrera’s status as a veteran playing in MLS (along with injured Columbus Crew goalkeeper Nicholas Hagen and CF Montréal youngster Olger Escobar) means his teammates look to him for leadership. That also means more freedom and trust from Tena, whether he wants to venture forward, slip inside or stay back against a tricky winger.

“Even more with the national team than D.C., these guys look for me to set the tone,” Herrera said. “If they see me leaving it all out there, getting into other players, talking to the ref, they’re going to follow suit and be ready. I’d say my role is being as good as I can in my position to handle their wingers and support our center backs, but also being a tone-setter.”

Creating a platform

Herrera’s eagerness to be an example has made the 28-year-old one of the most consistent performers for Tena since he first put on the shirt in 2023. A Las Cruces, New Mexico native who developed in the Real Salt Lake system, Herrera was on the path to the USMNT and even earned a senior cap in a 7-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago at the end of a January 2021 camp.

Leapfrogged on the depth chart by other right backs, Herrera felt that match froze him out of the international game until hearing from former RSL teammate Rubio Rubín that a one-time switch was still possible under FIFA regulations. With a Guatemalan father, Herrera has always been proud of his heritage and, along with Rubín and a few other recruits, hopes to help the team succeed now and long-term.

“There was a great option here. I talked to family, friends, to Rubio a lot,” Herrera said.

“Hopefully we can leave the federation in a better place than when we got here for the players of the future. I think we’re helping create a platform for a lot of Guatemalan players and proving to the world there’s a lot of quality not only on this selección, but in the league.”

Historic opportunity

Now, Wednesday presents Herrera with the opportunity to play against the country of his birth.

It has made him think about how he’ll even behave. Will he put his hand over his heart during both anthems? He’s decided he will. Will he say hello to friends on the USMNT before the match? He’s doing that too, cautioning that there are no friends once the whistle blows.

“It’s definitely going to be weird, but at the same time special,” Herrera said. “Playing for the U.S. was always my dream as a kid. I never knew Guatemala was an option. I poured my heart into that, but once I made the switch, I completely poured my heart into this with Guatemala.

“I’m very proud of both nationalities, and being able to have these two nationalities is incredibly special and I’m very fortunate for that.”

Overall, Herrera wants to treat the semifinal like any other match. He knows that’s not quite the case, though, both because of the personal significance and how Guatemala, ranked No. 106 by FIFA, haven't played a contest of this magnitude in quite some time.

“I’m going to try not to let the big picture of what it is get to my head, lock in on my role and what I need to do for the team, and just do that to the best of my ability,” Herrera said. “As a team, we’re going to approach it like we did Jamaica, we did Panama, we did Guadeloupe, and we did Canada.

"Coming off the huge win against Canada was great, but we’ve got to come back to earth pretty quickly, be ready to go and leave everything out there.”

That is what the millions of Guatemala fans demand. Herrera is ready to deliver. Win or lose on Wednesday, he will try to keep it together, not to get too high or too low.

At this stage of his career, in this big of a competition, he may need to make another exception.