The wait is over: the USMNT’s first match of the Mauricio Pochettino era will kick off on Saturday against Panama at Q2 Stadium in Austin.
After six years with Gregg Berhalter at the helm, it was time for a change, and Matt Crocker and co. reeled in one of the top managers in the sport to take the reins of the U.S. program. One hopes that Pochettino can successfully put his stamp on a “golden generation” that failed to take the next big step under Berhalter — while perhaps uncovering other talent for the player pool.
And there have already been changes on the training ground: players, namely Tim Ream, have remarked that the intensity has been ratcheted up. Whether that translates to results remains to be seen, but it’s a good first step.
Which brings us to Saturday against Panama. It’s our first real look at how Pochettino’s philosophy will play out on the pitch. And while it will be difficult to draw many conclusions from this and Tuesday’s match at Mexico since this is his first time with the team, at least some measure of improvement will be welcomed.
How to watch and stream United States men’s national team vs. Panama
Venue: Q2 Stadium, Austin, Texas
Kickoff Time: Saturday, October 12, 9 p.m. ET
Available TV/Streaming: TNT, Max (English); Telemundo, Universo, Peacock (Spanish)
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one match and already more fun to watch!
For those that think a coach is only a max of 20% worth of performance, the US LOOKED a lot better than a GGG coached team. Especially the first 15 minutes, the ball moved quickly through the midfield.
Wow, that’s some sample size…one game. Let me help you out…the US has looked just as good on many occasions…they just happen to be inconsistent…what’s more…as usual…people seem to forget there’s another team accounting for 50% of the dynamics on the field, etc. Maybe you’ll realize the primary issue with the usmnt is the hype far exceeds the talent…no amount of coach cycling is going to change that. Or maybe you won’t figure it out. Either way…wild that someone would start drawing these kinds of conclusions from one game….against Panama…funny stuff.
Typically I’ve only heard such heavy weighting granted a manager from Americans who have the context of American football in the background where coaching differences are huge in any given game. Taking a step back, it’s wild to think that a guy waving his arms on the sidelines and shouting occasional direction would have even a 20% impact on the performance of 11 guys running for 90 minutes on a pitch. Have you ever played competitively? Surely the totality of coaching over my time playing had a cumulative impact. And training under any given coach and formation choices had some impact. But during a game our awareness or focus on a manager’s instruction and direction was limited…it’s ultimately a player’s game and to boot with a heavy stochastic component…ie not nearly as deterministic and discrete as American football.
Let’s gooo MERICA