Pellegrino Matarazzo, a natural successor to Pochettino with USMNT?

Without much fanfare, and in fact still largely unknown to many in the United States, Pellegrino Matarazzo has emerged as a natural candidate to take over the U.S. men’s national team in the near future, once the World Cup is over.

His playing career was spent entirely in Europe, but he was born in New Jersey. On April 18, his name was etched into Copa del Rey history in Spain, and even more so in Real Sociedad’s, as the club lifted the trophy, beating Atlético Madrid on penalties.

After just 14 games in charge at Real Sociedad, the Italian-American coach has already delivered a title to La Real and currently has them in the hunt for a place in European competition.

A natural replacement for Pochettino?

With the World Cup approaching and ongoing tensions within the U.S. national team and the country’s soccer federation, Matarazzo’s name has begun to gain traction across the United States.

In recent matches, the USMNT has failed to produce strong results, raising concerns about a potential failure at the World Cup. As a result, several former U.S. players have suggested in interviews that the team should look for someone truly committed to the red, white, and blue, in other words, a domestic coach.

Matarazzo is clearly one of the candidates who could take over. After the World Cup, the federation is likely to consider a change rather than sticking with Mauricio Pochettino, whose record stands at 14 wins, one draw, and nine losses, some of them heavy defeats.

Which teams has Pellegrino Matarazzo coached?

Matarazzo’s coaching career has been largely based in Germany, where he also played during a professional career that lasted about a decade.

As a head coach, he had a brief spell with Augsburg II between 2011 and 2012. He then spent several years as an assistant before getting his opportunity with Stuttgart, where he remained for four seasons. He later took charge of Hoffenheim for three years, and since late last year has been in charge of Real Sociedad, where he has already secured his first major trophy.

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