Mauricio Pochettino is the new head coach of a broken team.
An apathetic United States men’s national team went through the motions of September with two below par performances against Canada (lost 2-1) and New Zealand (drew 1-1).
The pair of results completes a humiliating summer that saw the USMNT win just one of their last seven games. Yes, the USMNT have only won one game in the last four months and been outscored 12-6 in the process.
Star forward Christian Pulisic spoke after the New Zealand game saying that the team need a culture shift as Pochettino comes in.
CP10 on new #USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino ️ pic.twitter.com/Roj9VQD5vs
— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) September 11, 2024
While the latest two friendlies were essentially meaningless and saw the USMNT without several star players, the results confirmed a sad statistic.
The USMNT are on their worst run of form in six years.
You have to rewind back to 2018 for the last time the Stars and Stripes were this deep in the dumps. They had just failed to qualify for the World Cup and followed it up with one of their worst year's on record.
Even then, the results don’t look quite as bleak as they do with the current squad.
2018 USMNT’s poor run of form: (1W-2D-5L)
- Lose 2-1 vs. Republic of Ireland
- Draw 1-1 vs. France
- Lose 2-0 vs. Brazil
- Win 1-0 vs. Mexico
- Lose 4-2 vs. Colombia
- Draw 1-1 vs. Peru
- Lose 3-0 vs. England
- Lose 1-0 vs. Italy
2024 USMNT’s poor run of form: (1W-2D-4L)
- Lose 5-1 vs. Colombia
- Draw 1-1 vs. Brazil
- Win 2-0 vs. Bolivia
- Lose 2-1 vs. Panama
- Lose 1-0 vs. Uruguay
- Lose 2-1 vs. Canada
- Draw 1-1 vs. New Zealand
Mind you the 2018 squad was in a transitional phase where guys like Michael Bradley, Julian Green and Matt Miazga were still starting games. Meanwhile the stars on the present-day squad were just beginning their international careers.
One could argue that the 2024 USMNT are experiencing a worse run.
Pochettino has coached for elite clubs in the world and the biggest names in the game like Lionel Messi, Neymar, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappé.
Getting this national team mess under control and ready for a home World Cup in less than two years might be his toughest challenge yet.
Pochettino’s first games in charge will be the October international break. The USMNT will host Panama in Austin, Texas, on Oct. 12. The next game will be a road trip to Mexico on Oct. 15.
