The reasons behind Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT loss to Mexico

Reality or Illusion? That is the question surrounding the United States national team following tonight’s events at Estadio Akron, where their dominance over Mexico came to an end. This 2-0 defeat breaks a five-year unbeaten streak against the Aztecs, and erases the momentum gained just days ago when the US began the Argentine coach’s tenure on the right foot at Q2 Stadium in Austin.

Mexico end US dominance

Those five years amounted to seven matches during which the Stars and Stripes had held sway, with significant titles on the line, including the Concacaf Nations League. The absences that Mauricio Pochettino and his US team faced in this match ultimately took their toll, particularly with the lack of key players such as Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, and two important strikers, Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Daniel Pepi. Many will point to this as a key reason.

From the start of the match, the team appeared different in every aspect. It was not the intense US side that, against Panama, had shown ambition from the opening seconds, something Pochettino had emphasized ever since taking charge and throughout the week leading up to the game.

The USMNT was overwhelmed by both the opposition and the crowd, which constantly unsettled the Stars and Stripes, further highlighting the absence of key players in the system that Pochettino is trying to implement with the United States. The first 45 minutes were forgettable, especially after Raúl Jiménez stunned Matt Turner with a free kick to open the scoring and kick off the Mexican celebration.

Changes with little impact for Pochettino

Mexico’s dominance in the first 45 minutes prompted the US coach to waste no time in making changes for the second half in hopes of turning things around. However, the story remained the same for the USMNT, despite the introduction of players like Lund and Zendejas.

Just four minutes into the second half, a move led by Jiménez resulted in Mexico’s second goal, with the Fulham striker assisting César Huerta. The intensity and competitive spirit of the US team completely faded, and the game plan shifted as Mexico capitalized on their momentum following the second goal.

Pochettino quickly turned to the bench again, bringing on Brandon Vázquez, Tanner Tessmann, and Haji Wright in an attempt to salvage a game that was already looking quite difficult by that point.

Pacing back and forth in his technical area, the Argentine pondered how to fix everything that had gone wrong for his team on the pitch, likely struggling to find all the answers as the minutes ticked by in the latter stages of the game.

In the end, Pochettino used all his substitutions, aiming to assess his squad ahead of the crucial matches in November, when the USMNT will face the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals. This ‘friendly’ defeat to Mexico will soon be left behind as they focus on the more significant challenges ahead.