Pochettino aims high: United States dreams of winning the 2026 World Cup
The United States men’s national team coach, Mauricio Pochettino, maintains his firm goal of conquering the 2026 World Cup, and insists that the players must “think big”.
Although the USMNT hasn’t reached the World Cup quarter-finals since the 2002 edition, their best result in the modern era, Pochettino maintains that the team should aim to win the tournament when it is co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico next year.
The Argentinian coach cited the example of Morocco, who surprised many with their surprising run to the semi-finals in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Pulisic will miss the Milan match due to a new injury
USMNT 2026 World Cup Big Board 3.0
USMNT World Cup starting lineup prediction
“For me, it’s about winning. I think if you don’t win, what does it matter? If you come in second, nobody ever remembers you,” Pochettino told Andrés Cantor for “Futbol de Primera” in an interview published this week.
Mauricio Pochettino
“And I think we should aim to win it. Then you tell me ‘you reach a semi-final, you reach the quarter-finals, you have a great tournament and, due to different factors, well, you can’t win’. I think we have to give ourselves credit and merit, but I think if you look at Morocco in Qatar, I think they get where they get because they always had the mentality of saying: ‘I’m going for it, I’m going to win'”.
Pochettino emphasized the importance of a winning mentality and establishing football as a permanent pillar, especially when playing at home.Since taking over after the disappointing performance of the USMNT in the Copa América last year, Pochettino has continuously spoken about the importance of a strong mentality and culture within the national team, constantly working to improve on and off the field.
“The storm began when I wasn’t there,” he said. “So the storm must have been the reason they looked for us. Sometimes I use the analogy that a ship in the middle of a storm needs to change the way it is heading, and the new captain has to accept the responsibility that the ship is being taken to a difficult place.”
Pochettino also referred to a turning point when losing the 2025 Gold Cup against Mexico, falling 2-1 on July 6 with goals from Raúl Jiménez and Edson Álvarez, insisting that the team has found a way to compete since then.
“I believe that, based on what we have shown in the last few months, I believe that the team, especially after the Gold Cup, has found a way to compete, a way to raise the standards,” Pochettino said.
Since the defeat against Mexico, the USMNT has achieved a record of 4 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss. Pochettino recently led the Stars and Stripes to a surprising 5-1 victory over Uruguay.
However, there have been many criticisms of Pochettino’s mandate with the USMNT.
“There are coaches here in the United States who have criticized me completely unnecessarily. I would never have criticized a coach,” Pochettino said. “I don’t criticize because I know how difficult it is to be a coach.”
The USMNT will face Portugal and Belgium in March, in what will be the last two matches before Pochettino names his squad for the World Cup.
