Mauricio Pochettino ‘loving’ USMNT mentality as boss warns of ‘underestimating’ his players
Article excerpt
Mauricio Pochettino, the newly appointed USMNT coach, is cautioning observers not to underestimate his squad ahead of Friday's World Cup opener against Paraguay. The Argentine manager, who has expressed enthusiasm for the team's work ethic and mentality during his tenure, believes his players possess qualities that rival nations should respect. Pochettino's warning comes as the U.S. prepares for their Group D campaign, signaling confidence in the roster despite questions about the team's readiness on the international stage.
Mauricio Pochettino's U.S. Men's National Team will face Paraguay on Friday -Credit:Stu Forster/Stu Forster/Getty Images
Mauricio Pochettino’s first FIFA World Cup game as a head coach is a matter of hours away, with his U.S. Men’s National Team scheduled to host Paraguay.
The Group D rivals will kick off their respective tournament openers at 9pm ET at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, in what will be the first World Cup game on American soil since 1994.
For Pochettino, it marks the beginning of what he hopes will be a lengthy tournament for the USMNT, as they chase - at the very least - a first World Cup knockout stage victory in 24 years.
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Pochettino said he is 'in love with the mentality of the players' -Credit:Jamie Squire/Getty Images
The USMNT’s tournament preparations have been decent, beating Senegal - who won the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year before the result was overturned - 3-2 in Charlotte, before falling 2-1 at the hands of one of the tournament favorites in Germany - results which Pochettino believes showed his side is capable of taking on "big teams."
Reflecting on what he has learned about his players throughout the duration of this camp so far, which recently saw many of his players gather to spend some downtime watching the NBA Finals, Pochettino said, via an online translation, “I have learned a lot. I think that every player always learns if you are open to capturing what the players can teach you. I am in love with the mentality of the players.
“I don't think you have to underestimate them because their emotional intelligence is very high. More than half of the players in the world become great sportsmen because they have that ability, that talent. They develop that mental capacity. And I tell you, they are all intelligent.”
Pochettino said that one of the keys has been learning how each player communicates individually, in order to know how best to communicate with them “at the same frequency.”
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“The important thing, and what I have learned from these 26 players, is that if you can communicate and change frequencies, because not everyone communicates in the same way, I think that in the end everyone feels the same, they suffer the same, they need the same,” he said.
“I think we have learned a lot as a coaching staff in creating each frequency to connect with each personality. And I think they are giving us a lot. We are really enjoying it a lot with the whole group.
“The shame, as we said, is not the headache, but that you feel that only 11 players can start tomorrow. But we also talked about how many players don't start by playing a World Cup, but they end up being definitive, or they end up being great figures of the championships. That's why it's important to be prepared too. Not only how it starts, but how it continues and how it ends.”
While Paraguay may be how their tournament will begin, they will at least also have to face both Australia and Türkiye. And with the top two teams from each group and the eight best third-placed teams set to go through to the newly created Round of 32, the USMNT will fancy their chances to make it into the knockout rounds.
And as is usually the case with tournament soccer, anything can happen in the knockout stages, and as such, who knows where it will come to an end for Pochettino and Co.