Coaching Philosophies and the Mauricio Pochettino System

I found this answer from Pochettino pretty interesting the other day about why he continues to call up Tim Ream:

I think he is a very consistent player. Always regular. He's calm, experienced. That translates to the group. I really like [that]. The knowledge about the game and the experience in the Premier League and in different countries I think make him a very good reference for the young guys. And also at the start of the process, he's a player that helps us to translate the ideas that we have. Maybe we [don't have] too much time, but I think he's a guy with the possibility to understand really quick because of his experience and knowledge and then to help the coaching staff to translate to the team.

 

Tim Ream is a very good player but the only reason why he is still with the USMNT as a player is that we don't have another good LCB

 

...................also leadership on a young team.

Its clear from every comment he's made that Pochettino respects Tim Ream a great deal.

I take Pochettino at his word in his comments above. Ream is a smart, experienced player helping the young guys with the transition to a new system. So Poch wants him as part of the group.

I think the emotional leader of the group is actually Tyler Adams (who we hear was the one dealing with the Reyna situation at the World Cup). Without him, I suspect there is a little bit of a leadership gap in the squad. Total speculation on my part.

Its like keeping a player such as Brian McBride or Eddie Pope or Michael Bradley in the squad past their "sell by" dates. Same thing. Its a lot about leadership. And not just on the field, but off of it.

 

Off of it might even be more important. Just think of how a 30+ old McKennie could give off the field advice. Yeah I did that and this how the fall out will be .....

 

I think people have consistently underestimated the value of a player who can pick something up very quickly, translate it and basically serve as a model and pseudo assistant coach for others to follow.

That plus a certain standard of professionalism and effort.

 

If Pochettino says he values something, why do you assume he is making it up?

While every player is in camp because there aren't better players somewhat by definition, I think there's a pretty good chance Ream is not the CB sent home even if we had another good left footer.

 

The thing I've learned during the rise of USMNT content creators/new age USMNT fans is many really don't value the intangibles like they should. To them as long as you can do pretty things on the ball it's all they care about. They don't care that you don't defend, don't show, don't make runs, ect.

Not to compare Poch to Gregg, but I've long had the opinion that many of the newer fans will be surprised and probably not in a good way to what players Poch will value

 

Every coach in the world values work rate, off ball movement, defense and leadership more than the average fanbase. Like every. single. coach. We definitely have more of a criticism culture today for a variety of reasons, but people complaining about the head coach is not new, I am sure.

I think there are times when we clearly overvalue some of those less visible things, like leadership. Either to the positive or negative. But to say they have no value is odd to me.

You can also see the disconnect. I would bet 99% of the people on here would point to the off field issues at the '98 World Cup as the biggest reason we flopped. Wynalda/Harkes, where we camped, etc. I personally think there's more to normal variation of play of a team that wasn't that talented, but whatever. Everyone would agree this would be a big issue.

And yet, when a decision is made on the 26th player on the roster for chemistry reasons, people shit a brick. Remember, it killed our '98 World Cup ... but if we account for it with a player so far down the roster that there wasn't even a roster spot for them at any other World Cup ever ... it's the dumbest decision ever.

Chemistry: vitally important in 1998; totally pointless in 2022.

 

I don't mean it that way. Ream is a valuable player for the USMNT, but my biggest issue with him is his age. If Ream were 30 years old and not 37 I would take him to the 2026 WC. At 37 his speed isn't there anymore. I would take Ream as a Staff member but not as a player. There's a reason why Ream went from the EPL to MLS. He is not as reliable as he used to be.

Pepe exception not the rule

 

I'd agree at times we do. One of my big complaints about Gregg was when a change was needed it felt like he relied way too much on the guys who were gonna come in and work hard no matter the situation. Like I think Kellyn Acosta and DeAndre Yedlin have their value, but they should not be the answer to every question and it felt like for awhile that's what was happening for Gregg... and when he came back that seemed to become Luca and Brendan. Again fine players with roles but they cannot be the answer to EVERYTHING.

I just think too many people just think on ball talent is enough and when they ask why players aren't getting called in or not playing more the answer usually ends up being... They aren't doing enough off the ball

 

No, Ream is not as good as he used to be for sure.

I'm just saying that if Pochettino (and every other coach) mentions that they value a player for their experience, ability to pick up a system quickly, and able to be an example to others ... it's okay that we simply take that at face value.

Maybe you didn't intend this, but it seems everyone is always very certain one of the most successful coaches in the world (never mind that even Berhalter was a vastly more successful coach than anyone here) is both an idiot and lying.

I don't think people need to agree, and he will certainly make mistakes. But maybe we should at least listen to the dude and take the argument seriously?

It's almost certain that Mauricio Pochettino has been more successful at coaching this sport than any of us will ever do at anything in our lives ... it's probably worth even considering his POV.

Again, maybe you didn't intend this, and you certainly aren't the only one. But it is always a bit weird to me that we get access to some of the thought processes of someone really good at something we are very interested in and so few of us actually want to try and learn from it.

 

I think that's a bit of your perception. While there were some guys I think Berhalter leaned on for too long, I'm not sure any of those specific names qualify, really, in terms of minutes except maybe Brenden (and we're seeing Pochettino likes him a lot, too).

Those guys barely played at the World Cup -- Brenden led with 108 minutes, but Acosta had 43 and Yedlin under 40. Acosta actually saved our asses. I don't know what the alternatives were supposed to be, frankly -- Reyna was hurt, and quite a few of the young names everyone wanted have not exactly lit our team on fire (remember the fury over Taylor Booth not being brought in? Does anyone think Malik Tillman was ready then?) After the WC, Brenden has gotten time but Luca hasn't played much at all.

You're kind of proving my point -- Berhalter after the World Cup dumped nearly every veteran and the vast majority of the high work rate, effort guys. Many of the guys who were there because they'd execute the game plan and do the dirty work.

And what did he get fired for? Listless, undisciplined performances. A team that failed to get up for games or show that veteran savvy. A team that suddenly didn't defend all that well. People complained about 1-0 wins, but we rarely gave up goals in Berhalter's first term.

Perhaps ... perhaps guys like Acosta -- who again, had a smart play that shows up as a yellow but saved our World Cup -- is much more valuable than people think. Perhaps Brenden's work rate, despite all the turnovers, has real value even relative to a skilled dude like Tillman who simply wouldn't go get the ball.

Coaches aren't always right and I'm not claiming anyone should simply shut up and trust the coach. But when every coach in the world -- and I mean, every -- values these things more than fans do. And when every coach thinks about things like leadership or easing in a young player so they are put in a position to succeed, etc., maybe, just maybe, we're wrong?

Berhalter's first term was characterized by a core group of young players plus a bunch of try hard, do as you are told role players with a bit more age. He tried a bunch of other young guys but dropped them. And our World Cup and other performances were roughly to expectations.

His second term he went all finesse and skill and youth, with the exception of old Ream and young Brenden, basically. But the backups became young guys with skills and little experience or toughness.

And viola, the team underperforms on what seems to be an utter lack of intensity, focus and toughness. Is it somehow better to lose as Tillman gets pushed off the ball instead of Jordan Morris right footing his way to a goal?

Now a new coach comes in and he preaches ... intensity, effort, toughness, belief. He's not exactly calling in Jordan Morris here, but I wonder if we should maybe consider that his focus areas might just be right?

 

This is a bad example though. I think your premise is correct, period, especially locker room and chemistry which is something we're not privy to until after the fact, but in the case of Ream, the core problem here is that he had a perfectly timed last great year in '22-'23, and then hit the age cliff like Wile E Coyote in '23-'24, as often happens with athletes. The dude is 37 freaking years old and plays like it. He's nearly a decade past the age apex for athletes in general. '22-'23 clearly looks like an aberration now and we have to decide just how valuable that translation/veteraness quality, that leadership is, versus being an overhill, slow, and kind of crappy CB. For me, it was time to move on in '23, and every time we roll him out there, the cost of having a guy who can't physically hack it in a young man's game, the tax on that value is getting higher and higher.

I get the argument, and it can be valid with a lot of edge cases, but I don't see Ream as one of them at this point. Would love to be wrong, but I don't think I am. Make him an assistant then. That's my view, like Roldan's chemistry angle two years ago.

 

Right now, Poch clearly values Ream's intangibles a lot as part of this transition.
And if Poch determines he's "past it," then he'll move on with regards to the lineup.
We have to give him the camps/games to determine that, though.

Whatever happened under Berhalter is irrelevant.

We wanted fresh eyes. We have fresh eyes.
Let them fresh eyes do their evaluation.

 

I'll be surprised if Ream hangs on, but I don't think making him an assistant is the same thing as having a player who can quickly understand and execute a gameplan early on in a coach's tenure. It's a different kind of leadership, and obviously, that gameplan reliability is also important on the field in execution.

Let's see if he's playing in March or if someone has taken the role. Heck, I don't know if he even plays both games here.

 

This is why I said that the only reason Ream still makes the team is because there's not a 20+ year-old that is playing in a decent league. Ream still has value for USMNT but speed is the issue here.

 

I know and I hear you, but I don't really want to be giving caps away and PT away to players who simply aren't good enough anymore because of entirely off the field plusses from him. It's just not good enough. Otoh, I'll grant that the CB position is awash in depth but little secure high floor and reasonable ceiling guys. It's basically a giant pile of inadequate, weak in multiple area guys which is why guys like Ream have been able to stick w/the pool so long. We aren't just transitioning to Pope's, and Gooch's and Boca's, we've got guys that just are a lot more erratic. Its frustrating, w/so many CB prospects bubbling up from 2015-2024, I really thought 4-5 of them would pay off emphatically, and none of them really have. Robinson was capped by an injury, McKenzie has a brain fart per game, Richard's never become what was hoped, Trusty's whatever Trusty is, CCV just wasn't athletic enough, Long got injured then old, Glad wasn't good enough, Miazga flamed out, like none of them played out as a ceiling case and many of them hit only their floors. Quite frustrating.

 

Berhalter did a similar thing when he started and used some lesser players that knew what he wanted to be examples for the younger players. Many freaked out but he started swapping them out and by the end everyone mostly agreed on his picks. He may have even decided to do it again bringing in new skill players to learn from older skill players with a plan to use Acosta like players when it became serious. Seemingly if that was his plan he didn't plan for Crocker to want better results now and not trust that plan.

Pochettino needs to get across what he wants and has less time so placeholders that show what he wants are necessary. We won't know until the actual WC if he pulls off what he (and we) want. I love the hire but there's no guarantee it works out. Example is Martino - he had a vaunted reputation but after losing in the playoffs to Berhalter in MLS, losing to him in US-MX games, not doing well at the WC and now getting knocked out of everything this year is he really a good coach? I sure hope Pochettino is loads better than Martino.

 

As you know "just not good enough anymore" really doesn't have meaning for me. Either you are better than the alternatives or not. And that's inclusive of things you do to make your teammates better. The same goes for the "not international" level argument.

That said, I don't really want Ream playing. We used to be a defensively solid team and not that long ago, but somewhere along the way we got very loose in the back and it's not all goalkeeping.

We have too many guys who simply make too many mistakes. That's compounded by a passive defense that lets the opposition get a lot of chances for us to make mistakes.

We have to find guys who don't make those mistakes, and while I am very skeptical of many of our guys right now ... Ream was really bad last window and he wasn't even good passing. Play whomever is going to defend best and then use numbers and positioning to make the passing easy.

That said, I'm okay with Ream in camp. Despite the issues, I don't know who is clearly better at this point. I guess Richards? It's not like this group isn't all mistake prone. Despite his WC gaffe, the least likely to screw up in Walker isn't here, which I do think is a mistake. Miles used to be reliable but that element has slipped. I know Trusty is the name du jour but he's not looked good for us in limited time and was straight roasted last year at club. I find the Celtic praise meaningless, really. McKenzie is getting better but he has a history.

 

I think people build up a perception of coaching efficacy that is actually largely built on roster superiority and shorter sample sizes.

 

Oh, no! He called it "The Group"!!!!!

 

Chris Richards and Mark McKenzie play a bunch of LCB. Trusty as well but he performed like Ream pre-turning the corner.

 

Personally I don’t think that “getting the team to train and more quickly adopt the ideas of the coaching staff” is an off the field plus.

 

I think Christian appreciated the sentiment, but a few too many F-Bombs for his liking