The United States Men's National Team crashed out of Copa America in embarrassing fashion this summer, hampered by stale coaching and a lack of in-game guile. But the USMNT's tournament exit convinced the U.S.
Soccer Federation that a new coach was needed to replace Gregg Berhalter, who was fired. It appears the search for a coach is over. Multiple outlets, including The Athletic , reported Thursday that Mauricio Pochettino — the Argentine coach known for stellar spells with Southampton, Tottenham Hotspurs, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea — accepted an offer to lead the USMNT into its home World Cup in 2026.
Pochettino is a great coach and the USMNT is a promising team with immense potential. But the two are not a natural fit, so this match will require sacrifice and compromise from both. Here are pros and cons of Pochettino coaching the USMNT.
PRO: Pochettino is brilliant with young players Part of the reason Pochettino accepted a coaching job at Chelsea last year — a job many believed a poisoned chalice — was the club's numerous young players. Pochettino adores shaping raw talent. His biggest career successes came from doing that with James Ward-Prowse and Luke Shaw at Southampton, Harry Kane and Dele Alli at Tottenham Hotspurs and with Achraf Hakimi at Paris Saint-Germain.
The addition of Pochettino is an excellent sign that U. S. Soccer aims to take its young generation seriously and equip its players with the skills to compete on the world stage.
CON: Pochettino .