U.S. Soccer have reached out to Mauricio Pochettino about becoming the new USMNT head coach, according to a report.
Paul Tenorio from The Athletic says that the federation have “engaged” with Pochettino and that the former Espanyol, Southampton, Tottenham, PSG and Chelsea manager is a “top target” to become USMNT head coach as the coaching search continues.
It had been previously reported that both the United States and England were interested in Pochettino.
The United States will be co-hosting the 2026 World Cup while England is set to be one of the favorites to win the tournament; The former fired Gregg Berhalter after they crashed out of Copa America 2024 at the group stage, while Gareth Southgate walked away from the England gig following its loss in the EURO 2024 Final.
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Eddie Howe and Graham Potter have been linked with the England job while our own Joe Prince-Wright argued that Southgate would be the perfect fit for the USMNT job. Jurgen Klopp has reportedly politely declined both gigs as he’s adamant in his year away from football following his legendary career at Liverpool.
Sky Sports says that Chelsea would be due $7-8 million if Pochettino signed on to coach a ‘top six’ Premier League clubs in the half-season after his departure, and that he’s open to an international job.
Would Pochettino be a better fit for England or the USMNT?
The 52-year-old Pochettino began his managerial career with Espanyol in 2009, only spending more time at Tottenham over the next decade-and-a-half. He’s also spent a year and a half each at Southampton and PSG as well as a year at Chelsea.
He may not have international experience, but Pochettino has shown a good handle on tournaments. Spurs went to two finals including the 2018-19 Champions League Final, while Chelsea went to the League Cup Final under his watch. He also won Ligue 1 and the French Cup at PSG.
Pochettino has succeeded in building ‘underdog’ Spurs into a tournament contender. He’s also done alright leading a big club like PSG on the field, but reportedly faced some issues in the locker room. Which of the following statements makes more sense?
- Mauricio Pochettino is the right man to manage the tremendous expectations and egos of the England national team.
- Mauricio Pochettino can give the growing but still young U.S. men’s national team the edge it needs to take the next step in a home World Cup.
I’d venture the latter, but there are a lot of candidates for most jobs out there.