Mauricio Pochettino’s vision for USMNT finally on display despite inexperienced team’s loss to Turkiye

East Hartford, Conn.-not for the first time, the American Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino of US Heren arrived at a press conference after the game after a loss, this time a 2-1 defeat against Turkiye in the first of two friendly matches that the Gold Cup will precede. However, there was one thing he was relieved about.

“We have to be positive, because today I think we can only talk about football action, football action,” he said.

De Lijn was the first of different similar comments during his comments after the competition, one that wore the luggage of the non-inspiring defeats of the team during the Concacaf Nations League Finals in March. Competitive Edge was the big talking point of those competitions instead of the tactical identity that Pochettino was hired to bring in a team that many believe they have the potential to have a real impact on the 2026 World Cup on home floor. On Saturday his vision could actually be seen – the aggressive press and the high line that had been the trademark of a Pochettino team in recent decade, was fairly easy to recognize, an approach that enabled them to dominate the property and to exceed the opposition 13 to 11.

The power of the USMNT to implement the plan was particularly impressive in view of the schedule with which Pochettino works is an inexperienced. Only six players arrived on Saturday with more than 30 international performances, and only one competition in what they hope will be a one -month session together, a large part of which will be spent on competing in the Gold Cup. Pochettino admitted that “the players are [at] Different levels “between their fitness and experiences on the international stage, so building chemistry would always be difficult, especially with a series of new ideas that were introduced to them. The group took a good job, he said, pointing out how there was room in the game plan for the goal of Jack McMlynn for only two minutes.

“The game plan was [for] Diego [Luna] To go inside, very close to Malik [Tillman] To check with Luca de la Torre and Johnny [Cardoso] And then with Jack who stays a bit on the side, but [he] Can go in, as he scored the goal or the possibility, then, to have the freedom to associate, “said Pochettino.” The idea was to use a side, Max Arfsten and Alex, to stay a little more and often some overlapp [after] A few days and then you have to compete [against] A team like Turkiye. I think what we have, playing this way is to control the possession, to control the game. “

Tyler Adams, one of the experienced players who came as a second half replacement, said that obtaining the details of the habits of the backline was also a focus of their first week together.

“We have worked a lot on our backline and the distance of the backline and when they step, when they fall, when we are in a deep block, no matter how we defend the area, and you can see that we have not admitted goals today,” said Adams. “It was clear that the second was a bit of a missed clearance, and it happened to be for the right person at the right time, but he really focused on sharpening that ship a bit. You could see that we make improvements. It is sometimes a bit loose, but we work on the right things.”

The goals they finally admit left some room for improvement, because both came from sloppy mistakes. Johnny Cardoso was in particular the fault for Arda Guler’s equalizer in the 24th minute, and although Pochettino crumbled it as the kind of things that can happen in a game, it speaks to a lack of precision on both ends of the field. Turkiye head coach Vincenzo Montella admitted that they changed their press early to unlock the defense of the USMNT, from not making any shots in the first 19 minutes to nine to the 35th. There is a question whether this inexperienced version of the USMNT is equipped to play Pochettin’s preferred -high line, although it was too early to call that kind of judgment.

“In this kind of competition, experience is important,” he said. “That is why these two weeks are important for the preparation for the Gold Cup.”

The attack of the USMNT, led by Patrick Agyemang on Saturday, also has a few things to refine. Although they surpassed Turkiye, they put only three of their 13 shots on goal and lost the expected goals fight 1.19 to 1.42. The big question now is whether they are able to weed the impression in the coming month, regardless of whether they will win the Gold Cup on July 6 or not.

“We have set the standard high,” said Adams. “Today, in a friendly game, we can test more things and take more risks, but we must be comfortable who take those risks that when it is in actual competition, we can perform.”