Pressing, pace and fast-tracking youth: what a Pochettino USMNT might look like

The United States Soccer Federation are evidently big-game hunting in their efforts to fill the vacancy at the helm of the men’s national team.

It’s been more than a month now since Gregg Berhalter was fired as USMNT head coach after a dismal performance at the Copa America held in the States, which saw the hosts limp out at the group stage.

The USSF’s first call as they began their search for a replacement was, reportedly, to Jurgen Klopp. After he left Liverpool at the end of last season, there is no bigger managerial free agent on the market than the charismatic German tactician. But Klopp politely declined the Americans’ advances, preferring to stick to his plan of taking some time away from the game before leaping back into a dugout.

Other star names such as Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Joachim Low were linked, evidence of the USSF’s desperation to appoint a high-calibre figurehead for the USMNT ahead of a World Cup held partially on home soil in 2026.

And the latest reporting on the matter claims the States have set their sights on Mauricio Pochettino . According to The Athletic, the former Southampton, Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea boss is the USSF’s top target and the federation have already held discussions with the 52-year-old Argentinian.

But what would a Poch-led USMNT side look like?

Formation flexibility
Throughout his managerial career, Pochettino’s sides have most commonly been associated with a 4-2-3-1 shape. And while this is certainly his most-used formation, the former Espanyol boss has proven a flexible tactician, adjusting his set-ups in relation to the players available and the characteristics of the opponent.

At Tottenham , for example – where, despite never winning a trophy, his team consistently over-performed against budgetary constraints across his five-year tenure – Pochettino often deployed a back three, either in the shape of a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3.

And at Paris Saint-Germain, an 18-month stint that presented a completely different set of demands and challenges to his time at Spurs, his most-used formation was 4-3-3.

If he takes charge of the USMNT, expect Pochettino to assess the players at his disposal before settling upon a preferred shape. And even then, he will deviate depending on circumstances.

Speed kills
A disciple of Marcelo Bielsa , under whom he worked at multiple stops during his playing career, Pochettino’s sides, at their best, play with a speed and directness reminiscent of the influential Argentina coach.

Pochettino’s Espanyol, Southampton and Spurs teams were especially notable for the pace with which they’d play in possession. In north London, he leaned into the searing speed of full-backs Kyle Walker and Danny Rose as a key facet of the side’s plan of generating fast attacks from transition situations.

This aspect of Pochettino’s tactical make-up feels particularly well-suited to the USMNT. The American players of the current generation are of a greater technical quality than past iterations. But while they might still lag behind international football’s very best nations in this regard, they are peerless athletically – key players such as Christian Pulisic, Tim Weah, Folarin Balogun and Yunus Musah would all thrive under a hyper-active transitional style of play.

Pressing priority
Similar to his need for speed, Pochettino’s teams have always prioritised pressing.

Another element of the Bielsa dogma the former Chelsea manager has assumed, his sides have continuously been characterised by their frenzied efforts to recover the ball in high areas.

This, again, is something that should translate well with the United States. In addition to the athletic supremacy of many of the American players, a large portion of the talent pool the next national team boss will select from has played in the Bundesliga – Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams, and Gio Reyna to name just a few – where intense, high pressing is commonplace.

The Land of Opportunity
Pochettino has consistently put faith in young players throughout his career. At Spurs, this saw him thrust the likes of Harry Kane , Dele and Eric Dier into key roles while still extremely inexperienced.

And even at Chelsea last season, where the sheer size of the club’s transfer outlay left little room from promoting youngsters from within, many of the players the Blues signed were still very young. Pochettino helped a 21-year-old Cole Palmer become a Premier League superstar while also entrusting Malo Gusto (21) and Noni Madueke (21) with significant playing time and handing 20 league starts to academy-bred defender Levi Colwill.

Behind the current roster of well-known American players, there is a new generation emerging – Paxten Aaronson, Kevin Paredes, Tanner Tessmann – who will hope to vault into contention for selection at the next World Cup. Pochettino won’t hesitate in giving chances to the nation’s best up-and-comers.

Player development
Whoever takes charge of the USMNT will be assuming the reigns of arguably the most talent-rich collection of players the United States has ever produced.

Ever since they flamed out at the Copa America, debate has raged over whether this set of largely Europe-based American players can truly be considered a ‘Golden Generation’. But irrespective of the semantics, this is a group not short of ability and that ought to be performing better on the international stage.

Pochettino’s two most recent stops – at PSG and Chelsea – might suggest he is not the best man to nurture these high-potential stars. But as talented and high-achieving at club level as the likes of Pulisic, McKennie and Weah are, they are not Neymar, Kylian Mbappe or Raheem Sterling.

A better comparison for the USMNT roster Pochettino would oversee is the Spurs side he managed. There, he moulded talented youngsters such as Kane, Dele and Christian Eriksen into genuine stars at the highest level, emboldening his gifted charged to develop; to punch above their weight against more expensively compiled teams and act as a unit greater than the sum of its individual parts.

That sounds a lot like what the USMNT has been missing.