Like most fans, U.S. men’s national players had heard the rumors of the incoming coach.
On Sunday night, during a team meal in Cincinnati, U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker told the players the federation was finalizing a deal with Mauricio Pochettino. It wasn’t until the pregame meal in the same city yesterday (Tuesday), however, that they were told it was done.
A couple hours later, U.S. Soccer told the public.
It was officially time to move forward under arguably the highest-profile coach in USMNT history. For the players, who have spent the last week or so dancing around questions about Pochettino, there seemed to be a sense of relief that the moment had come. In the wake of yet another disappointing result — this time, a 1-1 draw against New Zealand — the feeling that this group needed some sort of spark was unavoidable.
“Hopefully, he’s someone that’s going to come in and really change the culture around here,” said U.S. captain Christian Pulisic, who scored against New Zealand to move into the top five for goals all-time with the USMNT on 31. “And it’s time. We’ve got to take a big step up. I think we have the quality, and now it’s time to compete and try to win. So that’s the next step.”
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The idea of changing the culture and mentality came up multiple times in the mixed zone after Tuesday’s game. It was a stark change from the World Cup less than two years ago, when the culture of a young U.S. group was seen as an overwhelming positive.
The U.S. team has clearly regressed over the past 12 months, however, and frustratingly they seem to lack an edge as much as anything else in their performances. That was true in a listless 2-1 loss against Canada earlier in this window, and even if they were more aggressive against New Zealand, the quality and ruthlessness were still lacking.
Christian Pulisic wants more of a winning mentality in the USMNT set-up (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
“I mean just that winning mentality, just in every moment on the field,” Pulisic said. “We obviously were missing it again today. Just something is missing. I can’t exactly explain it to you, I wish I could, but just that winning mentality.”
Pochettino, of course, is known not just as a top man-manager, but also as a coach capable of inspiring teams to get more out of the collective. That was true, for sure, at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, and even his most recent coaching job last season at Chelsea.
Pulisic said he heard from multiple former teammates at Chelsea who enjoyed playing under Pochettino, and players spoke both on Tuesday night and earlier in the week about how the Argentine’s strengths might fit well with this team.
”His teams were always difficult to play against,” said veteran center back Tim Ream last week, when asked what he remembered about playing Pochettino sides with Fulham. “Obviously, he’s a high-quality, high-level manager, and they were teams that were really well-organized and really, really strong in the attacking sense. So, always difficult to play against them. I don’t think I was on the right end of any of the matches that I played against them.”
Mauricio Pochettino has an excellent track record (Henry Browne/Getty Images)
Pochettino will also be the first Spanish-speaking coach in the history of the U.S. men’s team, which could be a huge boost for the program with the country’s robust and growing Latino population.
“Think it’s great, of course,” said U.S. forward Ricardo Pepi. “We have some players who speak Spanish, of course, players like me. So just in terms of culture, it’s going to be great for the team, and, of course, for the people living around (the country) and Latino culture it’s going to be a gain, for sure.”
Many of the players in U.S. camp have been through coaching changes in their careers, as would be expected for any professional soccer player. Ream said he counted 10 or 11 different managers he’s played under at the club level. Those changes can always bring a spark, players said, and they don’t expect anything different with Pochettino.
“When someone new comes in, yeah, it gives everyone a bit of an extra push,” Pulisic said earlier this week.
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The hope is that the change encourages players to find their best performances with this U.S. team. It was a rough summer at Copa America, followed by an ugly September camp capped by an awful equalizing goal given up in the 89th minute on Tuesday. “Just a freak, freak goal,” U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner said. “And that sort of sums up sort of where the program was at right now.”
But there is optimism that Pochettino can help turn things around.
He is expected to be officially unveiled on Friday, and next month he’ll take charge of the team for the first time, in matches against Panama in Austin and away to Mexico. His job will be to get them back on track.
“Steady the ship,” Turner said. “Get to know the players in the first two windows, then have a chance to win a (Nations League) trophy in March and have a really good Gold Cup (next summer). So I think just (giving) direction, making sure that guys bring that intensity and energy every time they step onto the field, and that nobody takes their opportunities for granted.”
(Top photo: Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
