Pochettino's shorthanded USMNT faces a stern test in Mexico: 'We need this type of game'
It speaks to the global respect that Mauricio Pochettino has earned over the course of his 15-year head coaching career that his first match in charge of the United States men's national team — a debut Pochettino won when the Americans beat Panama last weekend — was, because of his mere presence on the sideline, the must-see contest of this month's two-friendly slate.
Tuesday's trip to Mexico remains far more fascinating from a pure soccer perspective. It would be far and away the must-watch normally, as El Tri is the USMNT's oldest and most hated rival.
"Of course it's going to be special," Pochettino said at his pre-match press conference on Monday night. "Special for our fans and special for Mexican fans."
The tilt at 50,000-seat Estadio Akron in Guadalajara will mark the 78th meeting between these North American neighbors, in a series that began nearly a century ago.
El Tri has won 36 of those encounters. But the U.S. has a posted a 21W-13L-13T record against Mexico over the last three decades, including the only meeting at a World: the famous 2-0 "dos a cero" victory in the round of 16 at the 2002 tournament in Korea/Japan.
Now the Americans head into Tuesday riding a historic seven-game unbeaten streak against Mexico. In March, the U.S. beat its chief nemesis in front of a sea of green-clad El Tri supporters in Arlington, Texas to win a third straight Concacaf Nations League crown.
Besting Mexico south of the Rio Grande is another matter entirely, though. Just one USMNT side has ever managed to triumph in Mexico in 28 tries all-time: Jurgen Klinsmann's in a 2012 exhibition at iconic Azteca Stadium, where Mexican-American defender Michael Orozco scored the storybook game-winner.
Like the current U.S. squad, Mexico also has a new manager in Javier Aguirre. The 65-year-old has led his country twice before – including in 2002 – and has history with Pochettino; Aguirre succeeded him at Spanish club Espanyol in 2012 when Pochettino left for Southampton of England's Premier League. Given the long winless streak and the change of leadership, there's little doubt that El Tri – and their fans – will be desperate to secure their first win over the visitors this decade.
"I think the atmosphere is going to be great," Pochettino said. "We need this type of game. To feel adversity. To feel that we are going to compete not only with the team that is in front of us, but with the atmosphere that we need to manage."
They'll also need to manage adversity before the opening whistle blows.
U.S. stars Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie were among five players sent back to their clubs on Sunday because of minor injuries or load management reasons, a list that also includes keeper Zack Steffen, fullback Marlon Fossey and forward Ricardo Pepi, scorer of his team's second goal versus Panama.
"It's a little bit sad, because these guys that were here wanted to help and play for the team," Pochettino said. "But at the same time, when one door is closed another can be opened. And for sure, there will be the possibility to play for other players. For us, it's another game to learn."
It's also the sternest test Pochettino's U.S. will face until next year, no disrespect to whatever foe the Americans end up drawing for next month's Nations League quarterfinals. Not that the Argentine spends too much time thinking about his team's opponents.
"It's a challenge to face Mexico. But the most important thing, like I told the players against Panama, is to challenge ourselves," Pochettino said. "It's improving the way that we want to play, the way that we need to evolve like a team in our mentality, in our attitude, in our arrogance, in the way we need to compete."
While a second-ever win in Mexico is the clear goal for Tuesday, the big picture — namely having a successful 2026 World Cup on home soil — has underpinned Pochettino and his staff's every decision during his first camp at the helm of the USMNT. Improvement, they believe, must come from within, one game at a time, regardless of who's on the other side of the field or where the match is being held.
"For us, we are our worst enemy," Pochettino said. "We need to challenge ourselves to be better and better and better."
Doug McIntyre is a soccer reporter for FOX Sports. A former staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports, he has covered U.S. men's and women's national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him @ByDougMcIntyre.
