A 2-0 loss to Mexico on Tuesday evening served as a reminder of how a lot work lies in entrance of the U.S. males’s nationwide staff and new coach Mauricio Pochettino.
Pochettino was handed his first loss in command of the U.S., and it wasn’t fairly. Mexico managed a lot of the sport and the U.S. was toothless within the assault. The Individuals generated no photographs on aim within the first half, whereas Mexico seemed way more energetic and harmful in entrance of a sold-out crowd on the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara.
The outcome snapped a seven-game unbeaten streak for the U.S. The loss additionally ended a four-game unbeaten streak for the Individuals on Mexican soil — they have been 1-0-3 within the earlier 4 matchups in Mexico.
Raúl Jiménez lifted Mexico to an early lead within the twenty second minute with a free kick that discovered the higher nook. César Huerta doubled the benefit within the fiftieth minute when Jiménez slid the ball away from his former Fulham teammate, U.S. middle again Tim Ream, atop the U.S. field and located Huerta for a simple end from shut vary.
A win at house over Panama a number of days in the past supplied a contact of optimism to the beginning of the Pochettino period. However even with many key gamers lacking in Mexico, Tuesday evening’s outcome was a reminder that that is nonetheless the staff eradicated within the group stage of the Copa America. A training rent isn’t a miracle treatment. There’s loads of work nonetheless to do — and depth that must be recognized and developed.
Remaining. pic.twitter.com/AFfYgMgr2X
— U.S. Soccer Males’s Nationwide Group (@USMNT) October 16, 2024
What modifications did we see in USMNT?
Mark McKenzie was a late scratch from the beginning lineup attributable to a groin damage, with Miles Robinson getting into the XI throughout warmups. Robinson, 27, was part of the Copa America roster however didn’t play. He began for the U.S. Olympic staff as an overage participant this summer season.
Robinson was concerned within the lead-up to the primary aim from Mexico when he bought the ball underneath stress deep within the USMNT’s defensive third and opted to clear the ball into the center of the sector relatively than attempt to play again to Matt Turner. Mexico gained the header on his clearance and countered, then drew a foul in a harmful spot and Jiménez buried the free kick for the 1-0 lead.
Robinson changing McKenzie was solely the second change for Pochettino in his beginning group, albeit unplanned. In any other case, it was the identical lineup from the win over Panama, with Malik Tillman changing Christian Pulisic, who left camp early to return to AC Milan.
Pulisic was one in every of 5 gamers who departed camp early, some attributable to damage and others to handle minutes. That group included Weston McKennie, Ricardo Pepi, Marlon Fossey and Zack Steffen. Their absences — together with different regulars who have been both not referred to as in attributable to damage or who dropped out attributable to damage — opened alternatives for different gamers to make an impression, Pochettino mentioned this week.
“It’s actually essential for the (different) gamers as a result of I believe they’re going to have the likelihood to play, to indicate their high quality,” Pochettino mentioned in his matchday-1 information convention Monday. “For us, it’s one other recreation to study, to study as a bunch, (as) a person participant … we’d like one of these recreation to really feel the adversity, to really feel that we’re going to compete, not solely with the staff that’s in entrance (of us), however with the ambiance that we have to handle, and that’s going to extend our expertise.”
A lot of these possibilities didn’t come till the second half, and perhaps they need to have come sooner. The U.S. seemed sluggish and sloppy within the first half and Mexico seized management of the sport and held it for almost your complete first 45 minutes. The U.S. had no photographs within the first half for the primary time in 25 video games, going again to an April 2023 pleasant towards Mexico, per TruMedia.
Which gamers made an impression — good or dangerous?
Does Mexico’s Raúl Jiménez depend? As a result of in that case, he was feeling himself within the first half.
For the U.S., although, there wasn’t a lot to love. It will most likely be unfair to single out anyone participant as a result of nobody stood aside from the remaining in an total poor efficiency. It lacked presence and management of the midfield, each within the staff’s incapability to grab the sport on the ball and to defend successfully after they didn’t have it.
At halftime, Pochettino made two modifications on the lookout for a spark: Alejandro Zendejas entered for Yunus Musah and Kristoffer Lund for Antonee Robinson. After the hour mark, three extra subs got here into the sport: Tanner Tessmann, Haji Wright and Brandon Vazquez. Auston Trusty was the U.S.’s ultimate sub within the 83rd minute.
With each groups making a number of modifications, the tempo of the sport slowed and the U.S. was capable of get on the ball extra usually, however Mexico stayed compact defensively and didn’t enable something too threatening to develop. Vazquez could have made essentially the most constructive impression. He gave the U.S. its first and solely shot on the right track within the 79th minute.
The largest impression of this recreation: The U.S. bought actual worth from taking part in a rival on the highway. Far too most of the U.S.’s friendlies have been performed at house or in impartial websites. The U.S. bought an actual lesson in entrance of a hostile crowd with a referee who usually swallowed his whistle. It was a refreshing change for this staff, and even when the outcome wasn’t good, the sport in Guadalajara supplied an essential expertise.
What’s subsequent for the USMNT?
The U.S. will play within the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals in November.
After Costa Rica and Suriname grabbed wins Tuesday night, it set the sector of eight: Mexico, Canada, U.S., Panama, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Suriname and Honduras. CONCACAF will launch its up to date rankings within the coming days to find out the matchups for the sport.
If the rankings don’t change — the U.S. sits third behind Mexico and Canada, and a loss to Mexico gained’t increase its rating — the U.S. will face Jamaica within the quarterfinals. The opposite matchups can be Mexico-Honduras, Canada-Suriname and Panama-Costa Rica.
The U.S. will play the second leg of that two-leg tie in St. Louis on November 18.
Required studying
(Photograph: Manuel Velasquez Figueroa / USSF / Getty Photographs for USSF)
