In some sense, the U.S. men’s national team were lucky the clip of Panama’s Cecilio Waterman running to Thierry Henry after scoring a late winner against the U.S. in the CONCACAF Nations League last March went as viral as it did on social media. It shifted the focus away from an abject performance by the USMNT that marked by far the lowest point of head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s time at the helm, at least until getting shellacked by Belgium to crash and burn out of a home World Cup, and sparked fierce debate from fans and pundits alike about the Argentine’s commitment to the job.
It’s fair to say that the events that have transpired since that lowlight in Los Angeles have vindicated both sides of that argument. The USMNT handed Pochettino a contract for another World Cup cycle, which gave him the fresh start he needed to implement a sweeping culture change focused on youth and team spirit that has seen the U.S. play perhaps their best soccer since Jürgen Klinsmann was in charge. However, Pochettino also proved his detractors right this week when he accepted an offer to become the new Manchester United manager, abruptly bailing on his promising project less than a year into his new deal.
Fittingly, Pochettino’s farewell before jumping ship to Old Trafford gives him a chance to make amends for his most glaring pre-World Cup failure and take the first step toward re-establishing the USMNT’s hegemony over the Nations League that they lost because of it, as his tenure concludes with the new-look Stars and Stripes’ first competitive fixtures in the form of two Nations League quarterfinal games against surprise World Cup participants Haiti.
The U.S. began Pochettino’s send-off on the perfect note, cruising to a 6-0 win on Saturday in the “away” leg in Miami (albeit in front of an overwhelmingly pro-Haiti audience) that was originally scheduled to be held in Kingston, Jamaica due to civil unrest in Haiti that has forced the national team into prolonged exile. Pochettino dissolved into tears in the pre-match press conference, and that emotion spilled over onto the pitch when Auston Trusty scored in the 10th minute in his first action since losing his father last month. Aside from a couple of Haitian chances that necessitated key interventions from Miami-born goalkeeper Diego Kochen, who continued his excellent form from the September/October camp, the U.S. dictated almost the entirety of the first half. Teenage sensation Julian Hall thought he’d doubled the lead in the 31st minute before he was called offside, and a combination of poor finishing by the U.S. and resolute defending on the part of a depleted Haiti side meant Trusty’s goal was the difference heading into the break and kept Les Grenadiers within striking distance despite being thoroughly outmatched.
The U.S. began the second half largely the same way, and it didn’t take long for them to find the insurance goal their superiority merited when Hall refused to be denied by the flag a second time and scored his fourth goal in his first five caps (and third in his first three starts) in transition in the 52nd minute. That second goal took out any wind Haiti may have had left in their sails, as they were essentially a non-factor the rest of the night. Just over six minutes later, Christian Pulisic, who had been left off Pochettino’s first post-World Cup roster to signal a changing of the guard following accusations of complacency contributing to the Belgium humiliation, won a penalty that he calmly dispatched despite a lengthy delay caused by Haitian gamesmanship. Merely 101 seconds after that, the face of the USMNT for the last decade scored a stunner from outside the box for his 35th international goal, moving past Eric Wynalda into sole possession of fourth on the team’s all-time top scorers list at not even 30 years old.
The U.S. showed in this match that they are clearly and simply better than Haiti, but the nomadic Caribbeans compounded their own misery when they left fellow returnee Weston McKennie completely unmarked on a corner in the 68th minute. Ferencváros’ Lenny Joseph thought he’d given Haiti a brief moment of respite in the 70th after Kochen misjudged a ball over the top and left his net unoccupied, but a narrow offside call made Haiti’s reprieve short-lived. Folarin Balogun, probably the most prominent omission from the previous roster alongside Pulisic and McKennie, had his joy undercut by a dubious foul in the 75th minute. But just like Hall, he quickly made that point moot in the 82nd in his first cap since his controversial reinstatement against Belgium to rub a final heaping of salt into Haiti’s already-gaping wound.
This win was about as stress-free as possible for the U.S. given the circumstances, which Pochettino attributed to the top-class professionalism of his players and staff who’ve helped him navigate the challenges of managing his emotions while still fulfilling his duties after making what he cited as one of the hardest decisions of his career.
“I can only say ‘thank you,’” Pochettino said after the game. “But not enough, because the way they [handled] the situation was amazing, making sure that today we could perform and play well and get a victory.”
Pochettino’s final farewell to USMNT fans will take place on Tuesday in Cincinnati in an official home match for the U.S., but his team brushed aside Haiti so swiftly in this match that the return leg of the tie is little more than a formality that the team can use to send him off to Manchester with as much fanfare as they desire.