U.S. Men’s National Team stars Weston McKennie and Tim Weah have risked infuriating Juventus fans after making divisive comments about Italian cuisine on a podcast
Weston McKennie and Tim Weah recently revealed that they prefer American cuisine over Italian(Image: Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)
Weston McKennie and Tim Weah may call Italy home, but it appears neither has yet been fully won over by the nation’s renowned food scene.
Currently Stateside competing in the FIFA Club World Cup for Juventus, the U.S. Men’s National Team stars recently appeared in their team’s inaugural Talk With Us podcast, during which they risked infuriating their fanbase back in Europe.
When it came to the topic of food, both McKennie and Weah agreed that Italy lacks “variety,” with the former suggesting most dishes simply come down to, “Pasta, pizza, fish, steak.”
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“You know what the problem is with Italian food? It’s great. It’s good food. You guys have good specific things that you do very well,” McKennie subsequently commented.
“But in America, the thing is if I go to a burger joint or a steakhouse and then I go to another one that’s 10 minutes down the street, I’m still eating a burger, but it’s a completely different taste.
“In Italy, you guys like, OK, if I go here to this restaurant and get a pesto pasta and then I go 10 minutes down the street and order a pesto pasta, it’s going to be like the same thing. You guys don’t have variety.”
If this wasn’t painful enough for Italian fans to hear, Weah went on to reveal, “I prefer American Italian food,” later commenting that “Americans do everything better.”
Unsurprisingly, McKennie and Weah’s comments drew plenty of criticism from fans, who were quick to call out the USMNT stars. “Come on! Italian food has tons of variety! You need more cuisine from different regions,” one fan said.
“Love them both, but on the variety part bro come on, USA doesnt even have a national dish and i dont think hamburgers and hotdogs are american in fact they are german and btw there are hundreds of types of pasta and pizzas so we have a lot of variey so, I’m sorry Tim and Wes but you messed up on the food topic but other than that, i love them both!” a second commented.
Weston McKennie recently signed a new contract with Juventus(Image: Photo by Elsa – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
“Come on! They clearly haven’t understood anything about Italian food,” claimed another. “Pasta with a million different recipes (sauces, meat, vegetables, fish …) and pizza, with endless ingredient combinations. And that’s not all: we have first courses, second courses, cured meats, cheeses, sweets, and desserts … Comparing American food to Italian food is like comparing a Fiat Panda to a Ferrari.”
While another joked, “Sell them both to Manchester United as punishment.”
An imminent departure seems highly unlikely for McKennie, who put pen to paper on a new deal with Juventus in May, set to see him remain in Turin through the summer of 2028.
As for Weah, he looks likely to depart in the coming weeks, with Giovanni Albanese claiming that his transfer is “now imminent” after he was left out of Juventus’ gameday squad against Manchester City on Thursday.