The message was so clear before the open sound inspired the US men’s national team’s first game after the World Cup – this is merely an introduction, both for the players and for the audience that has great hopes for them. Head coach Mauricio Pochettino said there are no discussions that “need to be done”, while midfielder Tyler Adams urged them to “go through the process correctly and really just lean in the direction”. First impressions in this setting should not, and should not, be permanent.
The freedom to perform without pressure can be liberating, though, so much so that the USMNT’s generational change began in Saturday’s 4-1 win over Peru, taking some of the first chances of his senior national team career.
“I think it’s so good,” Pochettino said post-match. “I think they played like experienced players. I think they are so comfortable on the field.”
Undeterred for the number who started with only 13 players, the activity of the US team ebbed and flowed as the old and new players built chemistry, even though they played against each other barely eight years ago. The pair were intermingled, first slowly, then together, though it was a series of memorable events. Justin Ellis, one of the 11 players who made his debut on Saturday, scored against his childhood idol Gio Reyna four minutes into the game, scoring his first international goal in the opening game. The 12-year-old took three shots and generated 0.41 expected goals plus expected assists in 62 minutes, a solid performance for a forward whose creative potential is prominent. He has three goals and 12 assists for Orlando City this season.
It was one of the best shots in a first half that started intensely, only for the energy level to fail as the disjointed quality of the new-respected US team became easy to spot. Peru had an equalizer 11 minutes later courtesy of Gianluca Lapadula, the visitors’ center George Campbell’s error in his second hat-trick, while left-winger Peyton Miller, another first-timer, was caught out of possession after leaning against the inclination of the mind. The mistake was ultimately a survivor – the USMNT, after all, actually has time on the clock to fix any health problems over the next four years. Then it was simple to have their teammates covered after the rise.
The USMNT took things up a notch after half-time, especially on the half hour mark with a flurry of substitutions that exemplified what Pochettino described as the young energy of the newcomers. First came Mathis Albert, a 17-year-old winger who used most of his pace to rattle Peru’s defense and earn a penalty that Malik Tillman quickly converted in the 66th minute.
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“I don’t know if Mathis Alberti’s action was a punishment or not[t]”Pochettino said of the foul that Mano Menezes was the rest of that Peruvian contender outside the box.”[There] not VAR, but, I think, for me, it was a penalty. The first action [after he] He goes on the pitch, bam… He’s young, he is. It needs to be improved. It needs experience, yes. He needs everything, of course, but he goes to the asphalt and does not think. Go. He wants to play, he wants to have fun, he wants to. This is what we need, and that’s why I’m so happy with everyone [of the players].
Then 18-year-old Julian Hall also marked his debut, his instincts to be sharp enough in front to be in the right place to receive Sebastian Berhalter’s cross to the goal from close range. The teenager returned the favor in the 90th minute with a well-placed pass for an assist on a screaming Berhalter, who could have been the highlight of the day on another day.
Hall is a different type of striker than Elias, better known for his scoring prowess (or at least known as a teenager) – he has 13 goals and three assists for the New York Red Bulls in all competitions, returning from a 12-game goalless run a week ago with the only goal at New York City FC in major league play.
Teenage metascorers alone are an example of a broader trend across the playing pool, one that is already encouraging one game into the new four-year cycle. Pochettino is only working with a group of inexperienced forwards for this camp — 22-year-old Damion Downs has the most of the group with six caps and is a last-minute addition after World Cup player Ricardo Pepi retired with injury. The lack of experienced options has renewed questions about how the team will cope without the likes of Pepi and Folarin Balogun, who scored three goals in the World Cup and became the undisputed first-choice centre-forward. It’s far too early to hang USMNT hopes on Hall or Ellis, or even write off the rest of the former team like the incompetent Cole Campbell, but the proposed goals are strong first impressions – an indication that at least the trend is in the right direction, so that significant members of the national team play four years to reach the next World Cup.
“It’s true, now it’s easy,” Pochettino said. “Obviously, we’re going to have some ups and downs on that trip, in the next few games, because all the games are completely different, but it’s important that we start to show the ability we have with this group of players.
USMNT newcomers embrace Pochettino’s tactical ethos
The team’s overall performance also provided an insight into the latest members of the player pool being drawn to Pochettino’s tactical options, even in weaker situations. The head coach’s attacking identity comes with a steep learning curve ahead of this year’s World Cup, although the strategy was ultimately a strong fit for a number of players who have been targeted to attack players in the form of careers. Based on natural skill sets alone, the new attack-heavy generation seemed set to successfully transition into it, and Saturday’s game marked the first successful test of that hypothesis.
“They understand much better than how we explained it,” Pochettino said. “I think what we felt, and this is credit to all the coaching staff in MLS and all the teams in MLS, they deserve credit more than us, because the understanding of the game, the ability to adapt so readily to tactical demands, that is because they have good coaches. What is important is to praise all the coaches who work in MLS with these guys, and the way they understood from day one, in the end each and every concept was after one in the end that we interpret how we assimilate, and then we apply in training, and then today we saw it.
Pochettino opted for a healthy mix of veterans and newcomers in his starting line-up; Six members of the World Cup team joined Baehrens, Miller and forward Cavan Sullivan as a trio to earn the first caps while Campbell and midfielder Yunus Musah rounded out the group. The newcomers settled in well enough to reinforce Pochettino’s tactical vision, constantly pushing Miller while Sullivan was also a presence on the opposite wing and really challenged the Peruvian defence. Sullivan may not be the headline-maker on Saturday, but he made an impressive USMNT debut with one shot, one chance created, two passes in the third attack and completed 19 passes out of 20 in the first half.
“I’m so happy with the result,” Pochettino said of Sullivan. “I feel really proud. He’s sixteen years old and he’s acting and he’s fighting and he’s playing with character. I’m so happy with him. This is a kid who has absorbed a lot of pressure from. [whole] environment; now he is with the people in his club and will do everything to protect him and help him and support him so that he can develop. There is no doubt that he knows that very thing. He is so big and he needs time for Mathis Albert, like Zavier Gozo, like Adri Mehmeti or Brooklyn. [Raines] or Neil [Pierre] or Frankie [Westfield] or Julian [Hall] or Justin [Ellis].
It was in the second half, and especially after a heavy substitution near the hour mark, where Pochettino really showed the high-intensity version of the USMNT. They went from nine exact shots and 0.81 expected goals in the first 62 minutes to seven shots and 1.58 expected goals after, although the season has changed with the introduction of players with different profiles. Reyna, Tillman, and Sullivan were each trying to create forces, to the point that they did not have enough players to make the goal. Albert and Hall, meanwhile, were a bit more direct because of their natural skill sets, paving the way for the US team to run up the score in the final runs of the game.
The experience around them helped. Tillman is perhaps the only player who has had the chance to do so so far, but he has used the World Cup platform to remain a central figure for the USMNT, balancing creative talents with scoring that has been on hand this summer with two goals apiece. He created three chances and generated 1.4 expected goals and assists, the bulk of that coming from his three shots, including his penalty. Even as young players have earned the spotlight, Tillman has led a team of veterans who will undoubtedly remain in the mix on the road to 2030 in large part because they are still quite young themselves – every player in the camp is under the age of 30, another World Cup for each of them is a very realistic goal.
“The senior players deserve a lot of credit in the way they handle, the way they direct, the way they support, the way they welcome, the way they create an environment. [that is] let them feel comforted [they are at] home, right?” Pochettino said. “I think it’s a big, big value for us to help these senior players in this way.”
Patience has quickly become one of the coach’s strengths as the new cycle begins, with Pochettino often struggling to keep up, recommending newcomers and experienced players. However, somewhere in the midst of his post-match remarks, the true feelings about posterity slipped away. He spent the better part of two years looking for time in the build-up to this year’s World Cup, while working with the players on the team’s achievements. The concept of the season has changed into something else entirely, though for the new players – it might just be the real deal, the chance to connect with his new teammates on Saturday is as strong a first impression as any.
“Here is the language of football connecting good players,” Pochettino said. “They don’t need a lot of time together, and because they are good, they have quality, so they connect quickly. That’s all they need. [a] a few training sessions. If they don’t have quality, it’s difficult. You can practice for one year, and maybe the natural and organic connection never happens. It’s like mass. They have great talent. which is why they connect. Join the good players. I don’t need time.”