News: Sporting News: Pochettino rages at critics of USMNT World Cup prep: 'They can talk bulls—'

now he will feel invested in the current group and keep them around

i guess this is actually the group he is taking to the WC?!?!?!

this is such a disaster

w/e the case, the noise is getting to him

 

When asked about their preparation for the Japan match, Pochettino said they are trialing a number of different tactical approaches to see which works the best.

"We have not too much time to work, and I think it's important to use these games like a training session. That is important for you to know, it's like a training session. We need to put into practice things that will be important for the future of the team."


That is a very different tune from the narrative Pochettino had pushed in the recent past. In his introductory press conference, for example, the U.S. coach said that it was instilled in him during his playing days that there was no such thing as a friendly. "For me, it's not a friendly game. For me, it's official. When I was a player with Argentina, Copa America, the World Cup, or a friendly it was the same, to show that you are the best and win the game for your country."

this guy is SUCH A WANKSTER

 

"We have not too much time to work, and I think it's important to use these games like a training session. That is important for you to know, it's like a training session. We need to put into practice things that will be important for the future of the team."

well they certainly arent charging "training session" prices to attend these matches, thats for sure

WAYYYY overpriced tickets for glorified training sessions???

doesnt seem like the way to get it done ussf

 

How are the tickets overpriced? The games sell out, don't they?

 

only bc foreign fans flood the stadium......without mexico and korea etc.....the matches are empty

 

So? This isn't a World Cup qualifier. We shouldn't be gerrymandering crowds for friendlies. I thought people wanted the USMNT to experience "hostile environments" anyways, so shouldn't it be a *good* thing that the crowd is against us?

 

well normally yes but not for a home world cup

there should literally be zero reason for this team to prep for hostile crowds

which is why they are playing all friednlies at "home"

having crowds against you at a home world cup just might be the most pathetic thing i can imagine for a host country...maybe even worse than getting grouped....and it is likely to happen to the usmnt, depending on the draw

 

This group needs to be humbled. They think that just because they have big contracts and play at fancy clubs in Europe, they're the best team ever. They've let the media hype go to their head. Are they the most talented generation? Debatable. But what isn't debatable is that this team would get battered by any previous USMNT from the past 35 years, because there's no fight. There's no heart. There's no "us against the world" mentality because they feel as if they've already proven themselves at club level. And then they come to the USMNT and they think they can beat their opponents with quality when they can't, not even against the tier 2 CONCACAF teams like Canada and Panama.

 

i guess we are living in the shortest of short term attention spans in history but these guys actually won the first 3 nations leagues in a row. yeah they lost the last one.....but i personally put that on poch, not the players. he managed that tourney very poorly.

these guys have done it in concacaf.....even though youre right that theyve stuggled a bit lately.

and i also agree theres just something off about their mentality and approach.

it bothers me how they seem to think winning in concacaf or getting blasted in the WC is actually a good performance. i thought the qatar WC was pretty poor but according to the players, it was great. there's just a disconnect there...where they dont seem to have enough ambition and willingness to hold themselves to a higher standard. and no one can criticize them or they get all bothered about everything.....


idk....i dont necessarily think they need to be humbled. i think they need to be educated. they need to be coached. they just dont play with intelligence, a lot of times. they play without guile and craft....they are technical and skilled but so easily outfoxed. they dont know how to think their way out of a wet paper bag.....a lot of that is how mls teaches the game and how greggg wanted to choreograph everything.

I never EVER watch the usmnt and come away thinking wow...they really thought their way out of that problem and solved it on the field NEVER EVER

i just cant believe this is still where we are in 2025, with players at big clubs all over europe....its like these guys just started playing yesterday sometimes when I watch the national team. they dont take agency and control over their own lives and careers and destinies.

you watch these guys like luna, blacmon berhalter etc playing vs korea.....where was the risk taking??? where was the will to impose themselves and make an impact? safe backpasses galore...like bruh....thats not gonna get you to a world cup.....like they dont get it at all.

i agree though....about the "stars".....in a way.....they play cocky with attitude but it rarely comes off vs anyone good.....but otoh, im pretty sure thats all the coaches have in the way of a gameplan. theres no rhyme or reason out there....and you cannot only blame the players for that.

 

Sharing this with you in case you missed it

 

And not very long ago these fools thought we should be expected to make the quarters next summer. I felt like I was going insane. Thankfully it seems many have now come back to reality and the expectation seems to be *lower* than in previous World Cups, partially thanks to the extra KO round now required to make the RO16.

 

I’m glad they are feeling the pressure. Time for them to respond.

Japan is the favorite tomorrow. Probably a heavy favorite. Time to make something happen.

 

Do you know what isn’t humbling? Telling a guy like Weston Mckennie, and the other healthy non callups, that their place in the 26 and the starting 11is/are so safe that they’re better served by skipping this window and staying with their clubs. Want to really humble a player? Force him to take a transatlantic flight….grind out training sessions in a completely different time zone, and then watch two matches from the bench as the non humble players actually play. Thats humbling. Being granted time off to secure your place in your club side? Thats entitlement.

 

If you think Qatar was poor, that means you expected us to make the quarters, you think the youngest team at the damn thing (or second youngest) was one of the 8 best teams in the world. That’s crazy.

 

Your approach is very dictatorial, and was out of date 20 years ago when dealing with athletes.

 

I don't think there's any question that Pochettino has treated all of the cycle so far as if it was preseason in advance of the World Cup. As a club manager would treat the months of friendlies before an actual competition starting.

It's clear that he doesn't care about results in these friendlies at all.

Do people think he cares about ELO ranking??

Ultimately, if we do well at the World Cup.......................we're all going to forget these results.

What are the chances of that happening? I don't know. I need to see this team actually beat a World Cup level opponent. As long as we keep calling up these experimental rosters, we're going to keep losing to teams like South Korea and Japan.

 

No I was in Atlanta when Weah drew the red upper deck might have been 70% capacity at best.
Yes tickets are over priced.

 

Y’all are using very different definitions of “overpriced.” One view is that if there’s enough demand to consume supply (ie if games mostly sell out) then that proves they’re not overpriced. Another even more self-interested view would be that whatever pricing maxes out the USSF’s profit, regardless of selling out, that’s the optimal price level. But both of these definitions use the USSF’s bottom line as the benchmark.

Another view is that the games should be accessible to most of the fanbase, which will span the spectrum of wealth. That’s harder to define with precision but some of the recent ticket prices, thinking in terms of a family or group of four and accounting for things like parking, travel costs, concessions, put the cost of attending a game in the $1000 range even when you’re going for the cheapest ticket (that’s based on the lowest ticket price I found when I just looked at tonight’s game). Hell of a costly night out for regular folks when you consider how shitty the MNT has played recently and that this is just an exhibition. So yeah, not a scientifically precise definition but by this measure I’d say tickets—and the game experience generally—is overpriced.

 

Simply said grow the game. Lower the price so you sell out. If you do not sell out give tickets away to local kids clubs.

 

If you give things away for free.... they don't have value......

 

I'm sorry but you are completely misguided in this. One only has to look at how excited a little kid at a baseball game that gets a foul ball or a homerun ball is. This helps to create memories and a fan for life.

 

Dude, I was THAT kid..... I'm not a lifetime baseball fan. People's interests and hobbies in life change. What you liked/loved as a kid may no longer hold your interest as a teenager, young adult, or adult.

 

They should sell tickets to clubs first, then the public, and then give tickets away to youth organizations (soccer first, then everyone else), college intramural teams, inner city missions, etc, etc. Give them away to US Soccer bars and viewing clubs.

They can change the way things are, but they have to pay the womens team salaries too, which is why it has become a pure money grab. The USMNT is a funding instrument for the womens team.

 

That was COMNEBOL who priced those tickets. Just like it will be FIFA who prices the World Cup tickets.