Mauricio Pochettino Chooses Caution With Time Running Out Before The World Cup

When Weston McKennie signed for Juventus successful 2020, it had only been 30 days since Andrea Pirlo was made nan Italian club’s manager. A fewer weeks ago, Luciano Spalletti was appointed arsenic Juve’s 5th head since McKennie joined – aliases his seventh, if you count nan interim caput coaches. It’s not a caller business for nan American. But according to US men’s nationalist squad caput coach Mauricio Pochettino, it’s why McKennie isn’t pinch nan US during their upcoming friendlies pinch Paraguay connected Saturday and Uruguay connected Tuesday.

Pochettino could person selected McKennie, trusting that Spalletti is nan first Juventus head successful years to beryllium instantly convinced of nan multifunctional Texan’s value. Rather than nan accustomed regular of a head trying to push McKennie retired of nan club, only to recognize that there’s a logic only 3 players successful nan squad person been astatine nan nine longer, Spalletti has fixed McKennie starts successful each 3 matches he’s overseen. The 27-year-old has played each but 5 disposable minutes successful that span.

Still, Pochettino chose caution.

“These adjacent fewer weeks, pinch nan anticipation for nan caller coach to activity pinch nan players there, I deliberation it’s important for Weston to beryllium location and to person nan coach to support playing [him],” said nan Argentinian. “I deliberation that’s much important than to beryllium pinch us, because we already cognize what he tin supply nan team.”

McKennie isn’t nan only absentee. So excessively are Christian Pulisic, Malik Tillman, Antonee Robinson and Chris Richards, each of whom are recovering from injuries. Tyler Adams, meanwhile, was a precocious scratch aft freak injuries successful consecutive Bournemouth games – a stray cleat to his knee and past a head-to-head conk pinch teammate Adam Smith, which near nan second concussed.

The absences mean that, astatine most, Pochettino will person a azygous world model to activity pinch his full, first-choice squad earlier he assembles it for adjacent summer’s World Cup. And erstwhile he does, it will beryllium March 2026, pinch his European-based players already coming disconnected seven-or-so mostly uninterrupted months of nine soccer.

In his year-and-change successful charge, Pochettino has ne'er had a afloat complement of his champion players – whether they harvester to shape his champion team or not. Even past March , astatine nan ill-fated Concacaf Nations League Finals that triggered a full reset of Pochettino’s project, he was without strikers Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi, and full-back Sergiño Dest, whose productivity retired wide wholly changes nan team’s setup. During Pochettino’s only different tournament, nan summer’s Gold Cup, nan US were without an astounding 10 regulars – but nevertheless made a spirited tally to nan final.

This litany of absences is, successful part, a policy. The US caput coach could person insisted connected nan beingness of Pulisic, who injured his hamstring while pinch nan nationalist squad successful October but made his return pinch Milan connected Saturday. Or Tillman, who is besides backmost from an wounded sustained astatine that aforesaid US camp. Or Richards, for that matter. After all, nan Crystal Palace defender has played each 90 minutes successful his club’s past 3 matches.

But location are relationships to maintain. Richards’ nine manager, Oliver Glasner, was upset astatine nan October call-up, erstwhile Richards played each 180 minutes successful nan power of Texas and astatine nan altitude of Colorado successful spite of an evident calf issue. This time, Pochettino opted to support nan peace, to beryllium negotiated and strategic, moreover though Glasner’s words “made maine consciousness very disappointed, because I americium very respectful pinch each nan coaches and each nan clubs.”

“It’s not communal consciousness to telephone a subordinate that possibly is coming [back from] a mini injury,” Pochettino said. “We ne'er consequence players … Always what we want is to do nan champion for nan player, to beryllium successful a very bully information and past to person successful March, and of people erstwhile arrives nan infinitesimal to prime nan roster for nan World Cup, to beryllium successful nan champion place, successful nan champion form, successful nan champion shape.”

Pochettino, then, trusts that nan March camp, and nan weeks-long preparations for nan tourney proper, will suffice to forge thing cohesive retired of each those puzzle pieces he has laid successful disconnected clusters.

“I person nary concerns astir that,” Pochettino said of his dwindling clip pinch nan team. “We person settled nan principles and I deliberation nan squad has responded very well. That is nan clip that we have, and we are not going to complain. We cannot springiness excuses to ourselves. I deliberation we person clip enough.”

But nan broader conundrum here, of whether to prioritize squad building aliases enabling his players pinch their clubs successful hopes of a semipermanent payoff, besides underscores conscionable really overmuch is retired of Pochettino’s control. At nan World Cup adjacent summer, nan USMNT will proceed to beryllium astatine nan mercy of injuries and nan unrelenting churn successful European nine management. There is simply a immense magnitude of randomness baked into nan look of immoderate world job. For each nan bully intentions successful this ploy to play it safe, location is nary telling which cardinal US subordinate will suffer a friends head astatine conscionable nan incorrect time. Or who will get benched down nan season’s location stretch, their shape fading successful captious months

Because McKennie is hardly unsocial successful cycling done coaches.

Not moreover halfway done his 3rd Milan season, Pulisic is connected his 4th manager. Gio Reyna, who made a astonishment return connected this US roster, had six Borussia Dortmund managers earlier leaving for Borussia Mönchengladbach this summer, wherever he sewage yet different caller head by mid-September. Upon his move from PSV, Tillman’s Bayer Leverkusen head was gone conscionable 2 convention games into nan season, each of 2 days aft Tillman made his nine debut. Glasner is Richards’ 3rd Palace head successful his 4th play there. Brenden Aaronson has had 4 Leeds managers since joining nan nine successful 2022. Although now apparently retired of nan US picture,Josh Sargent has had six Norwich managers since 2021.

There will surely beryllium much managerial upheaval astatine nan USMNT players’ clubs, perchance astatine nan disbursal of their shape and lucifer fitness. But each nan be aware and readying and diplomacy successful nan world can’t protect Pochettino and his US squad from it.

• Leander Schaerlaeckens’ book connected nan United States men’s nationalist shot team, The Long Game, is retired successful nan outpouring of 2026. You tin preorder it here. He teaches astatine Marist University.