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INGLEWOOD, Calif. – U.S. men’s national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino said Thursday’s 1-0 loss to Panama in the Concacaf Nations League semifinals was not a true representation of the group’s identity and potential, including star Christian Pulisic.
The three-time CNL winners lost the game after what Pochettino described as a first half that was “painful” to watch and did not bring out the best out of the entire group, who dominated possession and took 12 shots but mustered just 0.68 expected goals against a defense-minded Panama side. Pulisic in particular was absent, taking just one shot over the course of the game and though Pochettino was critical about his performance, his mood has not soured on the team’s most impactful player.
“It’s not [an] excuse, but a player like him is under pressure in the last few months, high pressure,” he said about Pulisic on Saturday in pre-match remarks ahead of the USMNT’s third place match against Canada. “For sure, that is not the Christian we want to see because I think he can do much better. … Sometimes this type of competition arrived in a good moment, sometimes not in a good moment for different players and that can affect the performance of the team. But, for sure, if we are thinking to the main objective, that is the World Cup, and no doubt Christian is going to be ready and is going to be at his best…for us.”
Pochettino also said that the showing against Panama was not a true indication of what he wants it to look like, stylistically, under his leadership.
“I think we expect more from everyone, from all the players. I think our expectation is so high,” he said. “One of the things I want to see, that we were talking [about] yesterday, that game doesn’t describe how we are like a team, like individual players, like coaches, like the U.S.A. national team. For different reasons that can happen, we have to improv.”
The head coach also attributed some of Thursday’s issues to a lack of chemistry between the players he selected after he went with a new-look group partially forced by injuries. Yunus Musah and Timothy Weah played as wingbacks at times, roles that are fairly new to them with the national team, while Tanner Tessman earned one of his first starts for the senior team in midfield alongside Tyler Adams. Additionally, Josh Sargent was the starter up top in the absence of Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi, who have generally ranked ahead of him over the last several years.
“That chemistry, I didn’t see that chemistry,” Pochettino said. “That is what worried me, what maybe was my fault and now we need to select different players and see if that happens.”
Pochettino teased that there will be some changes to the lineup on Sunday against Canada, making the decision to do some rotation before the semifinal game on Thursday. Canada will also offer a different tactical challenge than Panama, who opted to sit back for the majority of the game and only took their first shot on target in the 94th minute, when Cecilio Waterman scored.
The Argentine admitted that it was an imperfect performance on Thursday, but that the team did get some things right.
“For sure, we deserved to win the game against Panama,” he said. “You analyze after 94, 95 minutes and with only one [shot] on target, Panama score and beat us, but that is football. That is soccer, and we need to accept and to be [critical] because I think to arrive in this moment, if you concede one goal, if you don’t shoot two, I think you win the game before. The problem was this lack of [scoring]. I think the discipline was there. The game plan, I think they followed the game plan. They tried to do everything. I cannot complain about not trying – they tried. They ran, made the effort, but after, it’s about being really aggressive and competitive.”
Pochettino has fixated on establishing the team’s competitive edge in the early months of his tenure so far, a wise area of focus considering how a lack of intensity – especially in the first half – came back to cost them against Panama. Whether or not they can come out with the right response against Canada remains to be seen, though.
“It’s a question mark,” Pochettino said. “What we want to see is the same focus and concentration and mental level in every single official, or [not] official competition, and for me, tomorrow is going to be an important game to see how we react. We need to show character. … It’s not only about the result but it’s only about improving our performance.”
How to watch and odds
- Date: Sunday, March 23 | Time: 6 p.m. ET
- Location: SoFi Stadium — Inglewood, California
- Live stream: Paramount+
- Odds: Canada +225; Draw +230; USMNT +114
