It’s been a difficult few years for the USA national side, but word from players suggests the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino has lifted the mood considerably.
After a disastrous Copa America campaign saw the Stars and Stripes pick up just one win – and a damaging 2-1 loss to Panama – USMNT dispensed with former boss Gregg Berhalter and departed from their recent ethos of hiring homegrown managers to recruit Pochettino.
According to one player on the ground, it’s been so far, so good for the Argentinian’s arrival.
Tim Ream opens up on Pochettino’s Stateside start
Former Fulham and Bolton Wanderers defender Tim Ream is the most senior man in the USA’s dressing room, with over 500 club games accrued in his 37 years, plus an additional 66 international caps.
Since Ream’s debut in November 2010, Pochettino is the tenth manager to hold the USMNT reins, making him plenty qualified to assess the new man.
Speaking to FIFA, Ream said: “He [Pochettino] just brings an intensity and a focus in everything that he does, and he translates that into the players.
“Over the first couple of camps, that’s what we’ve seen and it’s been evident. He's going to continue that. He's going to evolve us. He’ll improve us in the way we want to play, in our transitions, movements, and rotations, trying to confuse opposition with different setups.”
It’s true that Pochettino, with top-level European experience with sides like Chelsea, PSG and Tottenham, is in a category of his own in terms of the quality that the USA have had in their dugout. Ream isn’t mincing his words when it comes to what he thinks the new coach can achieve.
“He’s going to lead the evolution of who we are as players and as a nation,” the centre-back continued. “He's going to take that to a new level.”
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, this is without doubt one of the most exciting periods in the history of the USA national side.
Hosting a World Cup with a genuinely elite manager in place and exciting talents like Christian Pulisic, Antonee Robinson and Folarin Balogun in their ranks won’t be enough to put them in conversations with the favourites, but it’s sure to make them an intriguing watch.
Erling Haaland has only failed to score against THIS ONE English side for Manchester City
‘There are a few reasons why Mohamed Salah might not win the Ballon d'Or - the voting process definitely takes that into account, so that may work against his chances’: Liverpool great John Aldridge on what’s holding Salah back from glory
