Pochettino defends the way he announced the U.S. World Cup roster: "I care, I didn't sleep for two weeks"
Mauricio Pochettino, head coach of the United States men's national soccer team, came under pressure after some players learned about their status for the 2026 World Cup by e-mail rather than through a personal phone call. The debate opened in the final phase of preparations for the tournament, which will be played from June 11 to July 19, 2026, in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with the American team entering the competition as one of the hosts under increased public expectations. According to reports from American media at the roster presentation in New York, Pochettino said the decision was not cold or impersonal, but part of a process that was emotionally and professionally difficult for him. "I care. I didn't sleep for two weeks," the Argentine coach said, defending himself against criticism that the players who did not make the 26-man squad had not been shown enough respect.
According to the official announcement by the U.S. Soccer Federation, Pochettino named 26 players on May 26, 2026, who will represent the U.S. at the home World Cup. The federation announced that, after the roster presentation, the team would begin its final preparations at the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Atlanta, with friendly matches against Senegal on May 31 in Charlotte and Germany on June 6 in Chicago. The U.S. will play in Group D against Paraguay, Australia and Turkey, with the opening match scheduled for June 12 in Los Angeles. Precisely because this is a home tournament, and because the American soccer program has for years been building the ambition of making a deeper step forward on the world stage, every decision by the head coach carries additional weight.
The roster was announced in New York, and criticism began immediately after the decision
The controversial part of the story did not concern only the names on the roster, but also the way communication was handled with players who were left off it. According to a Front Office Sports report, players who made the final squad received a short video message from Pochettino in a WhatsApp group, and then an e-mail, while players who did not survive the final cut received only an e-mail. Some fans and commentators assessed such an approach as too cold for a decision that can be one of the hardest in the career of a national-team player. Former U.S. international and television commentator Herculez Gomez, according to the same report, called such a method of notification "diabolical if true", which further intensified the public debate.
Pochettino, however, rejected the claim that this was a lack of care. According to Front Office Sports, he explained that the video message was not intended as a motivational speech, but as official communication of the roster. Regarding the players who were not selected, he said he understood the pain of such a decision, but argued that a personal call at that moment would not necessarily have been a better or fairer way to communicate. He emphasized that in an official competition, the working method does not change only because the decision is emotionally difficult. In his interpretation, respect toward the players was built throughout the entire cycle, not only through one phone conversation at the end of the process.
The Argentine specialist also recalled his own playing experience. According to The Guardian's report, he said he himself knows how painful it can be to miss out on a World Cup roster because he was not among Argentina's selections for the 1994 and 1998 tournaments. Pochettino stressed that the difference between club and international soccer is enormous: at a club, a player who is not in the squad for one match can get a new opportunity as soon as the following week, while missing the World Cup means waiting for a new four-year cycle. Precisely for that reason, in his words, the selection process was "painful" and "cruel", but also part of the responsibility carried by a head coach.
A difficult choice between continuity, form and tactical needs
The U.S. Soccer Federation announced that the players on the final roster include Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, Gio Reyna, Sergiño Dest, Tim Weah, Folarin Balogun and Matt Turner, a group that has formed the core of the national team in recent years. According to the federation's official announcement, Pochettino said he was convinced he had chosen the "best group of 26 players" for a successful performance at the World Cup, while at the same time thanking everyone who had been part of the qualifying and preparation cycle. Such wording shows how much the choice was tied to a balance between reputation, form, experience, player profiles and the needs of each position. In international soccer, the room for later corrections is significantly smaller than in a club environment, so every decision about squad depth also carries sporting risk.
Some decisions attracted particular attention. The Guardian reported that the omissions of Diego Luna, Tanner Tessmann and Aidan Morris were among the more notable topics after the roster announcement, while the inclusion of Alejandro Zendejas drew additional comments because he had not had many minutes under Pochettino. The head coach avoided explaining individual omissions at length, considering that such a discussion would be unfair to the players who had won a place. Such a stance can be interpreted as an attempt to protect the atmosphere in the dressing room, but at the same time it leaves room for public debate about the criteria. In the host country, where interest in the national team has already increased simply because the tournament is being played on home soil, such debates are almost inevitable.
The question of the midfield structure also opened up. The Guardian noted that Pochettino's roster contains only four natural central midfielders: Tyler Adams, Sebastian Berhalter, Weston McKennie and Cristian Roldan. The head coach then explained that he sees part of the solution in players who can change roles, including Gio Reyna, Sergiño Dest, Malik Tillman and McKennie in deeper zones. According to him, the goal is not only defensive stability, but also better build-up play, greater possession and quicker movement of the ball toward the final third of the pitch. Such an approach shows that Pochettino is trying to move the American team away from its traditional reliance on athleticism and transition toward a game with more control.
A home World Cup also brings greater pressure on the head coach
In its overview of Group D, FIFA stated that the U.S. will seek to reach the knockout stage against Paraguay, Australia and Turkey, while noting that the American team has reached the second round in four of its last six appearances at finals. This is important context because the host is expected not only to participate, but also to deliver a result that confirms the program's development. The U.S. national team advanced from its group at the 2022 World Cup, but was eliminated by the Netherlands in the round of 16. At the expanded 2026 tournament, with 48 teams and a new round of 32, advancing from the group will no longer carry the same symbolic weight as before, but the host will nevertheless be under intense scrutiny.
The U.S. federation hired Pochettino in September 2024, after a club career in which he managed Espanyol, Southampton, Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea. In the official announcement of his appointment, U.S. Soccer highlighted his experience in player development, working with strong dressing rooms and leading teams in major competitions. It was especially emphasized that the coach was arriving at a moment when the American program wanted to position itself as a more serious global competitor ahead of the home tournament. That is why Pochettino's decisions are now being viewed not only as a routine roster selection, but also as the first major test of his vision for the national team.
In the conversation carried by The Guardian, Pochettino said that American soccer is changing and that the profile of players is developing, with more of them passing through European leagues and more tactically demanding systems. He spoke about the need for the national team to be capable of competing with major soccer nations in a different style, not only with energy, physical strength and discipline without the ball. Such a direction carries advantages, but also risk: a team that wants more possession must have enough technical security under pressure. If the results in the opening matches do not match the ambition, the player selection and the manner of communication with those who were left out could again become a topic.
Pulisic as a symbol of ambition and doubts
Christian Pulisic, the Milan player and the most recognizable name in the U.S. national team, occupies a special place in Pochettino's project. The Guardian reported that Pochettino publicly expressed faith in him despite questions about form and previous tensions over national-team duties. The head coach said Pulisic is a "special player" and that he believes he will score at the World Cup. According to the same report, Pulisic has not scored for the national team since November 2024, and Pochettino admitted that one of the staff's tasks is to restore his confidence before the tournament opener against Paraguay.
Pulisic's situation clearly shows the breadth of the challenges Pochettino is facing. As a player at a major European club, he carries the status of a leader, but also the burden of expectations that are not measured only by his performance in a single match. Alongside him on the roster are other players from European soccer, including McKennie, Reyna, Dest, Weah and Balogun, which confirms that the American squad has greater international depth than in previous generations. But names alone do not guarantee automatic fluency in play, especially when a national team does not have much shared time for preparation. That is why the final friendly matches against Senegal and Germany will be important for adjusting roles, not only for raising competitive form.
In that context, Pochettino tried to reduce concern over previous weaker results. The Guardian states that he placed defeats in preparation matches against Portugal and Belgium in the context of the opponents' quality, noting that the World Cup often brings a different dynamic from the form shown before the tournament. His message was that mentality and the level at which the team enters the competition are more important than individual results from the preparation period. Such an argument has support in the history of major tournaments, but it will not significantly reduce the pressure if the host does not start convincingly. Precisely for that reason, the public debate about e-mails and video messages turned into a broader story about managing expectations.
Reports about Milan further open the question of the future
Ahead of the World Cup, reports also emerged about interest from European clubs in Pochettino, including Milan. The New York Post reported that claims had appeared about contacts related to the coaching position at the Italian club, while Pochettino mildly dismissed the possibility that he had personally conducted negotiations, but acknowledged that it would be understandable for his representatives to monitor the market. According to the same report, the U.S. federation showed interest in talks about a possible continuation of the cooperation after the World Cup, but no firm decision was announced. Such a situation is not unusual in soccer, but ahead of a home World Cup, every piece of information about the head coach's future can turn into a topic about focus and stability.
Pochettino, according to the available reports, stressed that he is fully focused on the U.S. national team and the start of the tournament. That is a message he needs at this moment because any doubt about his concentration can be linked to the roster debate. If the public is already asking whether the communication with the players was personal enough, additional speculation about a club future may strengthen the impression of distance. On the other hand, coaches at the highest level are regularly the subject of club interest, and Pochettino's résumé in the Premier League, Ligue 1 and European competitions makes him a logical name for such speculation. What will be crucial, however, is what the national team shows on the pitch.
For Pochettino, the 26-player roster is now a closed sporting and communication decision that he can no longer separate from the results. If the U.S. successfully advances from the group and shows a recognizable style of play, the debate about the e-mails will probably remain an episode from the tense final phase of preparations. If the host stumbles, the same detail could again be read as a sign of problems in the relationship between the head coach, the players and the public. For now, the only thing that is clear is that the Argentine coach has taken full responsibility for the way he communicated the decisions, arguing that he did not lack care, but had to choose a method of communication he considers professional. The World Cup will now show whether his sporting choice was equally convincing.
Sources:
- U.S. Soccer – official announcement of the U.S. national team roster for the 2026 World Cup, preparation schedule and group-stage matches (link)
- FIFA – overview of Group D at the 2026 World Cup and context of the U.S. opponents (link)
- Front Office Sports – report on the way players were informed, the video message, e-mails and Pochettino's defense of the decision (link)
- The Guardian – interview with Pochettino about the roster, Pulisic, tactical doubts and pressure ahead of the tournament (link)
- U.S. Soccer – official announcement of Mauricio Pochettino's appointment as U.S. head coach and context of his coaching experience (link)
- New York Post – report on stories related to Milan's interest and Pochettino's future after the World Cup (link)