Early Struggles Pile Pressure on Pochettino in New USA Role

Mauricio Pochettino’s tenure with the United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) has so far been a rollercoaster to say the least. With expectations high, it is safe to say Pochettino has not quite lived up to the same hype that he arrived in.

He was announced as the new boss on 10 September 2024 in what came during a transitional period for The Stars and Stripes, with Emma Hayes taking over from the Women’s side not so long before.

🚨🇺🇸 Mauricio Pochettino becomes the new USMNT manager, leading the US to World Cup 2026.

After contacts with several managers, former Chelsea and Spurs head coach says yes to proposal and project, as per reports in US overnight.

Poch’s back. 🤝🏻 pic.twitter.com/e6JmmU2AGz

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 15, 2024

Fans would have hoped that in preparation for a home World Cup next summer and a deep run in the competition desired, winning the CONCACAF Gold Cup was a mere expectation. After defeat to Mexico in the Final, the pressure is mounting on Pochettino to get his team in the right frame of mind to give home supporters a World Cup to remember.

The Pressures of an International Role

Pochettino has an impressive résumé, having coached Tottenham, PSG and Chelsea in the past. But stepping into a national team role comes with a massive amount of pressure and exceptional expectations to live up to. You go from having fans around the world monitoring your decisions when managing a club, but when taking charge of a country, you have their entire population examining every decision and they will tear you apart for any error, which we certainly saw during Gareth Southgate’s tenure with England.

The aforementioned Gold Cup consists of sides all around the CONCACAF region (North America, Central America, and the Carribean), so it is no surprise that USA were one of the favourites to win.

Pochettino’s side made their route to the final look effortless, until they met Mexico in the final. They put up a spirited fight – even taking the lead – however, fell short by a 2-1 scoreline after Chris Richards' early effort was cancelled out by Raul Jimenez, with Edson Alvarez's late strike sealing back-to-back titles for El Tri.

Mexico were deserved Gold Cup champions. 🇲🇽

The USMNT were second best for most of the final. Yes, there’s a valid gripe about that blatant handball no-call, but the reality is the U.S. couldn’t control the game — even after taking the lead.

Not sure how many sweeping… pic.twitter.com/fE3kNsBfIn

— Nico Cantor (@Nicocantor1) July 7, 2025

One of the key issues Pochettino faced heading into the Gold Cup was missing key players due to injury, fatigue, and the Club World Cup. Because of this, he was unable to get a feel for playing in a major tournament with his strongest squad.

There was mass panic amongst fans heading into the tournament, with the US on a poor run of form, and so this run in the Gold Cup has temporarily lifted some pressure off his shoulders, but inevitably the confusion and anger at Pochettino will return if their positive form does not continue.

Has Pochettino Lived Up to the Hype?

The Argentine took charge of his first USMNT fixture on 13 October 2024, with victory over Panama. His appointment very much excited the nation, and with a home World Cup around the corner, it gave them hope of achieving something special.

When Pochettino took over, the US side were a ‘work in progress’. And to an extent, they still are since he was missing many key players for this summer's tournament. This job was a complete step into the unknown, but his résumé proves he can make America great again.

Having almost taken Spurs back to the pinnacle of European football, he built a stature for developing young players. He turned Harry Kane into a goalscoring machine and turned the young Dele Alli into a nightmare for defenders. As a Chelsea fan, even I have to admit facing this pair was a terrifying prospect.

Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham's Dele Alli is "the most important emergence for English football in years" https://t.co/Zl95ot1aoY pic.twitter.com/whsNRFLmu2

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 4, 2017

We saw this again, when he inherited the youngest squad in Premier League history with Chelsea in 2023. He spent a season with the Blues, nurturing Cole Palmer into an absolute weapon, as he aimed to give chances to the youth at Stamford Bridge.

This ties in well with the US squad, who are equipped with a number of promising young players. A team which almost looked like it had stagnated since their encouraging World Cup run in Qatar in 2022, had their 2026 World Cup aspirations reignited following Poch’s appointment.

The media and supporters expected a complete transition following this, an event which seemingly has not occurred, leaving doubts if they will be at a good enough level to compete with the top nations in 11 month's time.

Their expectations going into the Gold Cup could not have been lower, thanks to not only the fact they had just been completely outclassed at home by the Swiss in 4-0 fashion, but because they headed into the competition without many marquee players.

Weston McKennie, Timothy Weah, and Gio Reyna all missed out due to the Club World Cup. While Christian Pulisic, Folarin Balogun, Antone Robinson and Sergiño Dest all missed out due to a long, tiring season or injury.

Eyes on an 8th Gold Cup 🇺🇸🏆

B.J. Callaghan names 23-player roster for 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup » https://t.co/vZ2yOZqWJM pic.twitter.com/LKRTkOPK8L

— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) June 12, 2023

There is no hiding that USA ultimately missed these players, and had they been there, we could be thinking about a real possibility of that deep run next year, but considering what resources Pochettino had at his disposal, he did a decent job.

When he was appointed, the US Soccer Federation said they would be investing heavily into their resources and developing future talent for the sport, so from this standpoint, winning the Gold Cup was the standard that had been set for him.

Furthermore, interesting decisions such as the one where Max Arfsten was instructed to play left-back despite him being a left winger by trade. But nevertheless, this on paper, average American side definitely proved their worth to give fans hope of a successful summer in 2026.

Is the Start a Sign of Things to Come?

Despite it being difficult to put a finger on how much the Stars and Stripes have progressed since Pochettino’s reign began, they definitely look different to what they were back in 2024, with young players like Malik Tillman and Diego Luna providing breakthrough campaigns throughout the tournament, a lot of change could still be ahead of them in time for their home World Cup in 2026.

With that being said, let’s take a look at USA’s start to life with Pochettino in comparison to the starts of recent, permanent managers before him.

Bruce Arena

(Second Spell) Played 10: Won 5; Drawn 5

What a great start right? Sadly, following their Gold Cup win in 2017, USA were then completely dismantled in the final stage of World Cup qualifying, as they missed out by one point despite being the top scorers in the stage.

This was Arena’s second spell in charge of the Stars and Stripes before resigning shortly after their failed qualification campaign. He previously managed the USMNT between 1998 and 2006.

How did Bruce Arena deal with being the manager that didn't get the US to the World Cup in 2018? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/5ILQ1MevFv

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) June 5, 2024

Gregg Berhalter

Played 10; Won 7; Draw 1; Lost 2

Gregg Berhalter took over a squad of dejected players on poor form, who had failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup a year prior. He got off to an impressive start, beating Panama, Costa Rica and Ecuador all without conceding a goal.

Their form gave them confidence heading into the Gold Cup, where they blitzed a group comprising of Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Panama as they topped it and went to secure a second-place finish, losing to Mexico once more. The squad was not equipped with the young talent it has now, but more players who were experienced including Zack Steffen, Walker Zimmerman, and Michael Bradley.

Berhalter’s side would eventually secure qualification to the following World Cup and earn a semi-final place at the next Gold Cup.

Mauricio Pochettino

Played 16; Won 10; Lost 6

Pochettino’s record so far is not bad but there is equally a lot of room for improvement. Winning 10 games is good, but the manner of their losses is what will be really concerning for the coaching staff and supporters. Although their victories have looked convincing, they have all been against lesser opposition, with the US yet to take down a nation ranked in the top 30 of the FIFA World Rankings.

Even in the UEFA Nations League did USA not make a mark in, being dumped out by Panama in the Semi Final before losing the third-place playoff to Canada. It has not been an easy start life for Pochettino, but not many people had that expectation to begin with.