Miami (AFP) – A run of four straight losses, including a 4-0 hammering from Switzerland on Wednesday, has left Mauricio Pochettino and his USA team feeling the wrath of critics a year out from the World Cup they will co-host. The USA head into their opening game of the CONCACAF Gold Cup against Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday having lost on home soil to Panama and Canada in the Nations League in March before friendly losses to Turkey and the debacle against the Swiss.
“I think it is the most embarrassed I have been for the US national team in a long time,” said Kasey Keller, who played in goal for the USA 102 times between 1990 and 2007. While there were plenty of American fans venting similar feelings on social media after the loss, what will perhaps be more concerning for the US Soccer Federation is supporters voting with their feet and not attending games. There were thousands of empty seats in Nashville for the Switzerland defeat after poor turn-outs for March’s games in Los Angeles.
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“There’s just a sense of apathy around the United States men’s program and I don’t think that’s a hot take,” former striker Taylor Twellman told NBC Sports. Alexi Lalas, a star of the USA team the last time they hosted a World Cup in 1994, has built a career in ‘hot takes’ for Fox Sports but even he was struggling to fire himself up for a Star Spangled rant after the latest disappointment.
“I’m having a hard time even conjuring up that and that makes a little sad. In the past when I was angry at what was going on, I felt compelled to express it and now they are not even worth that, not worth me expressing how disappointing this is right now,” he said on his podcast ‘State of the Union’.
Pochettino has been forced to field a largely second string squad in this month’s games with the likes of Tim Weah and Weston McKennie on Club World Cup duty with Juventus while captain and talisman Christian Pulisic has opted to take some rest along with some other members of the first choice squad. That latter decision prompted fierce criticism from some ex-players, including Landon Donovan, the country’s all-time joint top scorer, who during commentary of Portugal’s win in the UEFA Nations League hit out at the absentees.
“[Ronaldo is] 40 years old. He’s played a long-ass season. He’s tired. He’s out there grinding. Hurt himself in the process, and I can’t help but think about some of our guys on vacation, not wanting to play in the Gold Cup. It’s pissing me off,” he said. That led to a sarcastic reply on social media from Pulisic’s father Mark, who posted a reminder of Donovan’s own ‘sabbatical’ from the USA team.
But there is also pressure mounting on Pochettino, the Argentine former Tottenham Hotspur manager, who was appointed to the USA role in September. The coach said he would take the blame for the showing against Switzerland where the USA were 4-0 down by half-time.
“It’s my responsibility the choice of the starting 11. I wanted to give minutes to certain players, but we were never in the game,” the Argentine said. While Pochettino’s job may be safe, some are wondering if he might not need some assistance.
“It looks like he doesn’t know the team, it looks like he doesn’t scout the players, has no idea of the pieces he has at his disposal,” said former USA forward Hercules Gomez on YouTube. “The US Soccer Federation, why not place somebody who has some experience with the player pool to help Pochettino out because it looks like he has no idea who his players are? With a World Cup on home soil that is a disaster,” he added. The USA will co-host the World Cup with Mexico and Canada.
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