When you hear Mauricio Pochettino say that his latest players need to “believe” they’ll win the World Cup, it’s easy to roll your eyes.

It's the sort of eye-catching soundbite that ambitious managers often produce at their first press conferences.

What else could he say, in any case the months of international wooing of his latest employers, the red wine and steaks, the unprecedented financial package?

No, the Argentine is a winner and speaks like one. He can also be aware that he has two tasks to meet with the US national team: not only to extend the standard of the team in a comparatively short time period, but in addition to alter their mentality.

When asked in regards to the limited time (only 10 international breaks and no tournament) before the USA co-hosts the World Cup in 2026, he said: “Everyone thinks we don't have time to prepare and come to the World Cup in top shape.

“I'm on the other side. I don't want to make an excuse. I don't want to give the players an excuse to say: 'Yes, but I don't have time to learn the new ideas and the new philosophy.' No. We're talking about football here and the players are so intelligent and talented and can play differently.

“We have time and we actually need to consider in big things. We need to consider that we will win not only one game, however the World Cup. If not, it would be very difficult. We want players who show up on the training camp from day one and think big things.”

“This is the one solution to implement this philosophy or this concept of ​​delivering performance and putting your talent on the service of the team. That might be our big challenge.”

The players he takes on are, by and large, intelligent and realistic. They are also used to being asked what progress means to them. The subject came up frequently in interviews before and during this summer's Copa America.

“Getting through the quarterfinals,” midfielder Tyler Adams said when asked in June what a positive result would look like. “We need to win a knockout game under pressure. That's how we'll measure our success.”

That may not have been what some fans wanted to hear; a temporary departure from a rallying cry that promised trophies in the competition widely heralded as a dry run for the World Cup.

But if Adams wanted to create reasonable expectations, he was right. As it turned out, victory in a knockout match would have been a real step forward for a team that was thrashed 5-1 by eventual Copa America finalists Colombia in a friendly on June 8.

Instead, the USA were eliminated in the group stage. They were victims of an individual error by Tim Weah in the loss to Panama and then lacked the quality to avoid that error. They should have beaten Uruguay to advance, but they just weren't good enough.

The magnitude of the duty ahead of him should come as no surprise to Pochettino. It may sound nice, but when he talks about replicating the US women's national team's streak of success, that also seems absurd.

Deep down, he probably knows that too. That's why he publicly calls on his players from the beginning to stop hiding. No excuses. No believing within the story that there's simply no time.

It's a chance for the 52-year-old because in point of fact the story might be true and he’ll ultimately be judged on his words and results. The USA just lost to Canada and this week could only draw with a New Zealand team that’s 78 places below them on this planet rankings.

Confidence is low and Pochettino knows that constructing some kind of collective belief is crucial to getting the team back on its feet and arriving in 2026 with the mindset to win big games.

It's unlikely he actually believes the USMNT will win the World Cup in just below two years at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. But a team often accused of lacking fighting spirit when it really counts needs to start out pondering greater, and that's what that is about.

Secondly, his job is to adapt quickly to the very different demands of being a coach in international football, where he has limited opportunities to construct a team that may break down partitions for him, as he did in his best days at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur.

“Every time we have the opportunity to be with them, we will give them the information in a very targeted way,” Pochettino added on Friday. “We have to approach training smart enough to get the best out of them.”

But while he understandably preferred to not alienate a few of his latest players by listing the team's weaknesses at his official launch, one other reality is that Pochettino have to be ruthless.

He must quickly discover a top-class goalkeeper. He must construct a defense with the aggressiveness and intelligence that the teams from his South American homeland display.

There also must be a greater balance in midfield, because the team has loads of clever defensive midfielders but lacks consistent creativity. How long will he spend, for instance, solving the Gio Reyna puzzle?

Then he must find the striker solution that may spur a team that has been too frustrated in front of goal on the Copa. Which of the promising young players who performed well on the Paris Olympics will he include in his team?

And he has to do all this while achieving enough results to take a partly skeptical US fan base along on his journey.

So don't roll your eyes when Pochettino talks about how he believes the USMNT can win the World Cup. Maybe as a substitute you must close them and silently pray for the divine intervention he might need to attain all of his goals in lower than two years.

He will need all the assistance he can get.

The query got here twenty minutes into Mauricio Pochettino's introductory press conference as coach of the United States men's national team; it was the primary query of the event in his native Spanish.

“It gives me a break,” joked Pochettino concerning the probability to practice his English.

“What challenge made you decide to accept the job in the USA?” asked the journalist.

The query went to the foundation of an issue that hung over all the event in a glitzy high-rise in New York City's Hudson Yards neighborhood. Why would a manager with such a giant status consider this his next move?

The 52-year-old former Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea coach first spoke concerning the feeling he had when meeting with US Soccer executives after which concerning the great potential of the game within the USA before moving on to the true task at hand: taking the USMNT to a brand new level.

“It's a challenge that takes us out of our comfort zone,” Pochettino said in Spanish, smiling. “For us, the easiest thing is to tackle things that we already know and that we already have a clear vision and an idea (of how to achieve them). But this is about tackling something that you don't know so well; getting out of your comfort zone so you can challenge yourself.”

“It’s not just about the challenge of achieving things together, but also about challenging yourself.”

Whether consciously or not, Pochettino launched into a parallel path along with his latest team. For several cycles, the thought of ​​”getting out of the comfort zone to grow” has been a part of the USMNT's path to improvement. The idea dates back to the Jürgen Klinsmann era, but was also often discussed by former coach Gregg Berhalter.

But it's about greater than just going to Europe and playing for the most important clubs there. It's about finding the appropriate challenges that make you grow. Get higher.

That Pochettino sees this job as a challenge for his own development was perhaps crucial takeaway from Friday's press conference. The US needed a brand new voice to push them to take the subsequent step, beyond their potential and towards results. They will now begin that journey with a coach who has a greater status than anyone else within the room, but who’s in search of the identical sort of development.

Pochettino appeared charming, excited and motivated on the press conference. He talked about how comfortable he was to be with the USA, the respect of being the primary Spanish-speaking Latin American coach in this system's history, and his reference to US women's coach Emma Hayes and the potential impact the USWNT's success story could have on the lads's program.

He recounted how he learned the English expression “over the moon” during his first days as manager of Southampton within the Premier League and said he and his family were overjoyed to have taken on this latest job.

His switching between English and Spanish was a historic moment in itself, symbolizing that this commitment offers the U.S. Soccer Federation an unprecedented opportunity to succeed in the country's huge – and growing – Latino population.

However, Pochettino was clear that reaching his fans – each latest and old – got here right down to one thing: winning.

Throughout the morning, Pochettino returned several times to a straightforward concept that he believes can take the team forward: belief. He said the word “belief” a dozen times over the course of the hour-long event. For a coach known for uplifting a dressing room, it suggested he’ll put mentality and psychology as much on the forefront as tactics.

“'Believe' is a very powerful word for me,” said Pochettino. “You can have enormous talent and be clever, but in football you have to believe. Believe that anything is possible. If we all believe in it together, we will definitely achieve it.”

He later reiterated this concept along with his give attention to the World Cup, which the United States will host along with Mexico and Canada in two years.

“We really have to believe in big things,” said Pochettino. “We have to believe that we can win not just a game, but the World Cup. … We want players who show up at the training camp from day one and think big. Only then can we implement this philosophy or this idea to perform and put our talent at the service of the team. That will be our big challenge.”

Restoring that faith might be at the highest of his to-do list as coach of the USMNT.

The U.S. clearly lacked confidence within the September transfer window, which Pochettino said was comprehensible given their results on the Copa América. Their performances in a loss to Canada and a draw with New Zealand only exacerbated the issues throughout the group. Pochettino didn't seem too concerned concerning the group's overall culture, nonetheless, and alluded to the thought of ​​tapping into the “winning mentality” that permeates American sport and taking inspiration from the winning culture that the U.S. women have long displayed.

“We are here because we want to win,” said Pochettino.

Of course, ideas about easy methods to play the sport were also discussed.

“We are in the United States,” Pochettino said. “I think we want to convince our fans and aesthetics are really important. We want to play beautiful, good, exciting and attacking football. And then of course we want to have possession, because we are also coaches who have the philosophy of having the ball. We have to run, we have to move, we have to give our teammate options and good angles. … And when we don't have the ball, we have to run, we have to be aggressive, we have to be competitive.”

“The potential is there. The talent is there. It's just about giving them the best platform to flourish.”

While Pochettino acknowledged that these are his team's trademarks, he said he desired to get a feel for his players before deciding how the U.S. team would play.

That process will begin in the subsequent few days when Pochettino inevitably sits down and meets with members of the player pool, most notably star winger Christian Pulisic. Pochettino said he wants to listen to from each team member to get feedback on how they see things. He will then bring the group together for the primary time next month for friendlies in Austin, Texas and Guadalajara, Mexico.

The technique of getting a deal done was lengthy, taking greater than two months from the beginning of recruitment to his official presentation. Pochettino admitted it was difficult to attend. He was able to get to work.

Now the clock is ticking. The USA has lower than two years until the World Cup and still has quite a bit to climb to be ready, but they’ve a coach few would have thought would lead this group into this tournament.

A coach who will now attempt to instill confidence on this team.

Sports news

Mauricio Pochettino and the U.S. Soccer Federation are working on an agreement that might make him coach of the U.S. national team, an individual acquainted with the negotiations told the Associated Press.

Pochettino, the previous Tottenham, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain coach, has agreed to take over as U.S. coach however the deal has not been finalized, the person said Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity since the agreement has not yet been finalized.

Pochettino would succeed Gregg Berhalter lower than 22 months before the 2026 World Cup is scheduled to happen in America.

The USSF declined to comment.

Pochettino, 52, an Argentine, can be the primary foreign-born coach to guide the United States since Jurgen Klinsmann from 2011 to 2016. He coached Espanyol in Spain (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-19) and Chelsea (2023-24) in England, and Paris Saint-Germain in France (2021-22). He left the club after winning a Ligue 1 title.

Matt Crocker, the united states's sporting director answerable for the search, was Southampton's academy director when Pochettino joined the club.

The USA has 4 friendlies scheduled: against Canada on September 7, New Zealand three days later, Panama on October 12 and an opponent to be determined on October 15. The next competitive matches are a home-and-away CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal in November.

Mikey Varas, an assistant to Berhalter, could take charge of the team for the September games and Pochettino could take over for the October games.

Berhalter was fired on July 10, per week after the Americans were eliminated in the primary round of the Copa America. He was hired in December 2018, allowed to depart when his contract expired following a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands within the second round of the 2022 World Cup, then rehired in June 2023 and returned in September.

Pochettino would inherit a pool of players headlined by Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, who’ve enjoyed success at European clubs. But goalkeepers Matt Turner and Ethan Horvath and midfielder Gio Reyna have did not get playing time at top-flight clubs, and Chris Richards – at Crystal Palace in England – is the one centre-back in his twenties to play usually at a top European club.

Berhalter has used few Major League Soccer players and didn’t use a single one on the Copa America. Before managing the national team, Berhalter coached Columbus within the MLS.

Discipline on the pitch was an issue: defender Sergiño Dest received two red cards within the last 13 months, McKennie and winger Tim Weah one each.

Pochettino was a central defender who played for Newell's Old Boys in Argentina and for Espanyol, PSG and Bordeaux in Europe from the late Nineteen Eighties until 2006. He made 20 appearances for Argentina and took part within the 1999 Copa América and the 2002 World Cup, where his foul on Michael Owen led to a penalty converted by David Beckham in a 1-0 group stage defeat to Argentina.

After his playing days, he became a coach at Espanyol, taking up as first-team coach in January 2009 and helping the team avoid relegation. Pochettino was sacked in November 2012 with the team in last place and was hired by English club Southampton two months later.

Pochettino joined Tottenham in May 2014, who reached the finals of the 2015 League Cup (losing to Chelsea) and the 2019 Champions League (losing to Liverpool). He was sacked in November 2019, with Spurs in 14th place, and replaced by José Mourinho.

PSG signed Pochettino in January 2021. The team finished second within the league and lost to Manchester City within the Champions League semi-finals, but won the French Cup, beating Monaco 2-0 in the ultimate. Led by Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, PSG clinched the 2022 Ligue 1 title with 4 games to spare, but lost to Real Madrid within the Champions League round of 16.

Pochettino left PSG at the top of the 2022/23 season and was then hired by Chelsea in June 2023 after the club finished twelfth. Chelsea lost the League Cup final to Liverpool and finished sixth within the Premier League but missed out on the Champions League. Pochettino left the club two days after the ultimate.

Former Tottenham and Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino is a top candidate for the vacant U.S. men's national team position, based on multiple sources conversant in the coaching search.

According to sources, the federation was still considering several candidates as of last week, but Pochettino is seen by some as the favourite and US Soccer is in talks together with his camp.

US Soccer has declined to comment on specific candidates for the job.

Signing Pochettino can be an enormous achievement, especially at a time when the US fan base is on the lookout for a big-name coach. The Argentine has never coached a national team but has been very successful at club level, leading Southampton to an eighth-place finish within the Premier League in 2013, achieving record league finishes with Spurs including an appearance within the 2019 Champions League final, and securing a Ligue 1 title with Paris Saint-Germain. Most recently, Pochettino led Chelsea to a sixth-place finish and European qualification before leaving the club at the tip of the 2023/24 season.

US Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker and Pochettino overlapped throughout the Argentine coach's 12 months at Southampton. Crocker was then in command of Southampton's academy and left the team in November 2013 to hitch the Football Association.

The Argentine media company Olé had previously reported that Pochettino was a candidate for the job.

While it is feasible that US Soccer will make and announce a brand new signing before the September transfer window, the association plans for former US U20 national team coach and current USMNT assistant coach Mikey Varas to steer the senior team in friendlies against Canada and New Zealand on September 7 and 10, based on sources conversant in this system's planning.

The USMNT has been with out a coach since Gregg Berhalter was fired following their group stage exit from the Copa América this summer. Berhalter was coach from December 2018 to December 2022, leading the U.S. back to the World Cup after they did not qualify for the tournament in 2018, and nonetheless from June 2023 to July 2024.

The USA were poor on the Copa. They beat Bolivia of their first group match, but then lost to Panama after twiddling with ten men for over an hour following a red card for winger Tim Weah. The USA then lost 1-0 to Uruguay within the group final.

Pochettino can be probably the most famous coach within the United States since World Cup winner Jürgen Klinsmann. Although Klinsmann coached the German national team and Bayern Munich before taking the job within the United States, his fame was based more on his on-field performances as a player. Pochettino has made his name as a coach, with teams that look to dominate space through positional play, but in addition prefer to apply pressure and attack the opposition.

The 52-year-old is more likely to receive a top salary, having reportedly been one in all the highest-paid managers on the planet at PSG and Chelsea, but Crocker has stated that the FA won’t be limited by financial constraints.

“Salary-wise, it's a very competitive market and we have to be competitive to get a coach at that level who I think can move the program forward to get the results we want on the field,” Crocker said. “That's a priority. We're willing to invest in that and we'll continue to invest in it.”