The chief coach of the United States male team, Mauricio Pochettino, believes that the group could be the best team in the world in the next five to 10 years, giving the program an important vote of confidence as the 2026 World Cup approaches.
It is unlikely that Pochettino, whose contract extends to the tournament next summer, is in charge for when his prediction could reach a good end, but has taken advantage of the ambitious tone since he dedicated himself to work in September and continues to do so before the finals of the Concacaf Nations League this week, which presents his first opportunity to gain silverware as the head coach of the United States.
“In five or 10 years, surely we can be number 1 in the world,” he said in a recent interview, according to ESPN. “Could be”.
He made the comment while complementing American football in his current project to build a national training center of $ 200 million in the Atlanta area, which is expected to open in 2026 before the World Cup. Pochettino described him as “one of the most incredible training centers in the world. That will be the basis of football. It is the time when people can see, football will be a serious sport because it has a home.”
Pochettino gave his optimism one step further, responding to the comments of the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, in the White House earlier this month. Infantino told Trump that the USMNT could win the World Cup next summer when Trump asked him and although Pochettino does not believe that Infantino is qualified to answer the question, he did not knock down exactly the idea and responded affirmatively if he was asked in a visit of the White House that he said he would be open.
“Infantino [says]”Yes, we can win the World Cup,” because the president asked. Can we win? “Said Pochettino, according to Sky Sports.” Maybe you need to ask me directly, right? Because I don’t think Infantino can say three, four names from our players, right? … I will say yes … I will say yes, president. With his help, with fans, behind, organizing the World Cup, everything is possible. “
Although Pochettino’s rent indicates the ambitious plans of Us Soccer to have an performance in the World Cup next year, the high vision of the chief coach for the next decade is very aspirational for a promising football nation.
What would be needed to become the best football team in the world?
To become the best male national team in the next decade, many things would have to go perfectly for the USMNT. They have a basis to be competitive during the next decade thanks to the group of players, which is considered the best of the team in their history.
This version of the USMNT complies with many traditional successful markers in a way that its predecessors are not, among them, among them, with a group of central players that plays almost exclusively in the best leagues in Europe. In addition to that, several players are among the best players in those divisions: Christian Pulisic, for example, currently has 15 goals and seven assists for AC Milan this season, while reigning the male soccer player of the year, Antonee Robinson, is third for the assists in the main league with 10. Several current players of USMNT do not enjoy that success, as goalkeeper Matt Turner and Midfield Reyna, Who Who is the years of the USMNT. The consistency at the club level is generally the basis of a strong career of the national team individually, and this is possibly the first that several USMNT players need to address.
Building a complete squad that can compete at those levels is perhaps the biggest step that the USMNT needs to take to qualify among the best teams in the world, and the jury is still in the current state of its depth, as well as in the next generation of players. However, the first will be tested during the Games of the Concacaf Nations this month, while many of the alleged headlines are available for the national team, Pochettino will work with nine January camp players focused on the MLS due to injuries. However, it still feels too early to realistically predict that the USMNT will win the 2026 World Cup, although a reasonable objective could be matching the 2002 race with the quarterfinals, which was the best team final in the modern era.
As for the players that will arise in the next 10 years, it is still too early to say how talented they are as a group, although the capacity of the United States to follow the development routes of other nations, mainly depending on local clubs to promote young talent, has allowed the USMNT to close in recent years. However, the speed with which they can completely close that gap and several other factors to follow their path is unknown.
What else is going to build the best team in the world?
The quality of the group of players is easily the most important factor here, especially because national teams only summon a handful of times in a certain year and only for about 10 days at a time. However, having talented players is not the only thing about becoming the best national team in the world.
Coaching can play an important role, and the best managers can make the sum greater than the parties. That is true at any level: Pochettino, for example, was hired to take a promising group of players to new heights without necessarily aim The same with the two teams, but that are at the time of the World Cup, but that are in the World Cup, but that they are sinking the players of the world, but who are in the World Cup, but that are in the World Cup, but that they are sinking their world cup players, but are in the World Cup. Cohesive tactical idea that allowed them to win the main sport award.
Certain intangibles are also at stake, although they play a much smaller role in converting a team into the best in the world.
