Take a look through the past decade, and you’re guaranteed to find a handful of national teams that have reaped the rewards of placing consistent, unyielding faith in a manager’s hands.
Notable Long-Term National Managers
After taking the reins from Luis Aragonés, Vicente del Bosque (2008-16) guided Spain to their finest-ever moment with a maiden World Cup title in South Africa as well as a second-straight Euros title. Spain’s overarching dominance came to an end in Brazil, as Joachim Löw (2006-21) led Germany to their first-ever World Cup as a unified country.
Having watched helplessly as Fernando Santos (2014-2022) steered Portugal to their first-ever trophy, Didier Deschamps (2012-current) crowned his tenure as France manager as Les Bleus prevailed with the World Cup in Russia. They came within inches of becoming the first team in six decades to win back-to-back World Cups, only to be denied by Argentina on penalties.
The Albiceleste have turned a new leaf under Lionel Scaloni (2018-current), winning their first World Cup in 32 years sandwiched in between two Copa América titles. It’s no secret that teams like Croatia, France, Argentina, and Japan will have the added benefit of having accumulated nearly a decade (in France’s case, more than) with one manager.
The US Doesn’t Have That in Pochettino
It’s also an explanation for the general aura of preoccupation regarding the USMNT’s World Cup hopes. Whereas other teams have been slow-roasting a football identity, the USA’s tactical setup under Mauricio Pochettino is still undercooked. In fact, the meat hasn’t even finished defrosting.
Pochettino established himself as one of the best managers in world football at Tottenham Hotspur, guiding them to a Champions League Final and various title chases, before taking the reins at Paris Saint-Germain. But whilst he was able to win the first trophy of his coaching career (the Ligue 1 title), he never came close to implementing his tactical DNA before departing after 1.5 years.
A solid if unimpressive season followed with Chelsea before the Argentine decided to try his luck in international management. At the time, Pochettino’s reputation was at a historic low, one that dipped even lower as his former clubs Spurs, PSG, and Chelsea claimed silverware in the 2024/25 season.
Missed Opportunity
The USMNT could have hired Pochettino after their Round of 16 exit in the 2022 World Cup. Instead, after months of looking for a successor, the federation opted to re-hire Gregg Berhalter. It was a decision that ended in disaster, with the USA effectively wasting two years and crashing out at the Copa América group stage before cutting ties with Berhalter and bringing in Pochettino.
“Mauricio Pochettino was a big swing hire for the US. I like what he’s brought in terms of charisma, experience, his managerial past in coaching some of the biggest names, but this is his first World Cup,” stated Fox Sports analyst Stu Holden to Hooligan Soccer. “He himself will be experiencing a lot of this for the first time, and I think he’s spent the past 1.5 years perhaps underestimating just how much work he had to do to bring this group together, in a team that was made up of individuals. “
“I hope he can pull it together, I trust in his abilities as a coach that has done this in the past of making a team out of individual players. My hope is that he’s also learned that we need to be pragmatic to have success against the best teams in the world. If he does that and brings the special sauce of creating this togetherness, we’ll look at his tenure positively. But his tenure will be judged on how well he does in this tournament.”
So far, the biggest two concerns with Pochettino have been 1) his struggles to beat teams that are above the USA’s level and 2) his lack of chemistry with the players. This isn’t necessarily his fault, but more so an end product of being hired midway through a World Cup cycle.
Pochettino’s Track Record is Concerning…
After winning five of his first six, Pochettino’s side lost in the Concacaf Nations League Finals first to Panama, and then to Canada in the third place match. They then fell to Switzerland and Türkiye in friendlies before kicking off their 2025 Gold Cup campaign on home soil.
Pochettino was forced to field a second-rate team on account of players like Timothy Weah and Weston McKennie competing in the FIFA Club World Cup. Others like Christian Pulisic and Yunus Musah opted to rest, the former drawing considerable criticism. Despite all that, the US made it to the final, losing 2-1 to Mexico. Having won five of their last seven matches vs. their southern rivals, the USA have lost two in a row to El Tri under Pochettino.
…But His Commitment is as Well
Perhaps the biggest concern, however, is that Pochettino isn’t in it for the long run, but is instead using the USA to rehabilitate his value and participate in the biggest tournament in sports history, before moving back to club football in the autumn. After all, if the players don’t feel that he’s fully committed to the project, how else are they going to be able to commit 100% of their ability to fulfilling his ideas?
Pochettino became the highest-paid coach in U.S. soccer history when he penned a $6 million annual contract, one which will expire in July. And whilst Pochettino has vowed that he is solely focused on the World Cup, it can’t help the players’ confidence knowing that their coach is being heavily linked to a move to Italy.
The 54-year-old has held initial talks with AC Milan to become their next manager following Massimiliano Allegri’s sacking, with the Rossoneri dropping from third to fifth and missing out on Champions League football on the final day after a 2-1 loss to Cagliari.
It’s no surprise that Pochettino would welcome a return to international management, getting the chance to coach each week rather than every few months as well as compete in multiple elite competitions. However, in order for the U.S. to perform at their absolute peak, they need a coach who is fully focused on managing a World Cup, not whether he’ll be living in Centro Storico or Porta Nuova.
There’s no more excuses: it’s time for the USA and Pochettino to lock in and deliver the transformational World Cup campaign that this country has been waiting on. Anything less than a trip to the quarterfinal will be regarded as a disappointment for the Stars and Stripes — can Poch and co. put the speculation to the side and lead the U.S. to multiple knockout wins for the first time ever?
