U.S. Soccer Must Start Over After Pochettino’s Unexpected Exit for Manchester United

Mauricio Pochettino had the United States believing it could become a legitimate force in international soccer. Now just months after their most successful World Cup performance in decades, the Americans are looking for a new leader.Manchester United announced Friday that Mr. Pochettino had agreed to become its next head coach, leaving the U.S. national team for one of the most demanding jobs in European soccer. He signed a 2 1⁄2-year contract with the 20-time English champion, which is currently 18th in the Premier League standings after 10 matches.Mr. Pochettino, 54, and his assistants will remain with the national team for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals against Haiti on Saturday and Tuesday before departing for England where he will officially take charge Nov. 18, ahead of Manchester United’s match against Liverpool four days later. He becomes the club’s eighth permanent manager or head coach since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.For U.S. Soccer, the timing could hardly be worse. The federation had envisioned Mr. Pochettino as the architect of a longer-term project that would carry the Americans through the 2030 tournament in Morocco, Spain and Portugal.Now it must find a coach to continue the development and excitement generated during Mr. Pochettino’s tenure.U.S. Soccer chief executive JT Batson and chief operating officer Dan Helfrich will lead the search for his replacement, assisted by women’s national team coach Emma Hayes and former U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu.An intriguing name reportedly under consideration is Pep Guardiola, the Manchester City manager whose resume includes three La Liga championships with Barcelona, three Bundesliga titles with Bayern Munich and six Premier League championships with City.Mr. Guardiola, 55, has established himself as one of the most successful club managers of his generation. But he has never coached a national team and persuading him to leave Manchester City for an American program still developing its international identity would be a challenge.U.S. Soccer could also look closer to home, particularly within Major League Soccer. American coaches have had success with the national team. Bruce Arena guided the United States to the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals, while Bob Bradley in 2010 and Gregg Berhalter in 2022 led the Americans into the knockout stages.Another possibility is Steve Cherundolo, the former U.S. national team defender who currently coaches the Under-23 program. Mr. Cherundolo is scheduled to lead a senior national team training camp next month featuring primarily MLS players, giving the federation an opportunity to evaluate his leadership.Whoever gets the job will inherit a young roster with considerable room for growth. The average age of the American squad at the 2026 World Cup was approximately 26, with emerging talents such as 25-year-old striker Folarin Balogun, who scored three goals, and 22-year-old defender Alex Freeman.“There is tremendous talent in the U.S. player pool from the youth teams through to the senior team, and it’s one of the reasons we have so much belief for the future of U.S. Soccer,” Mr. Pochettino said in a statement.Mr. Pochettino’s impact was evident in the players’ reactions to his departure. Midfielder Sebastian Berhalter credited the coach with helping him develop both professionally and personally.“I can’t thank him enough,” Mr. Berhalter said. “He’s meant so much to me. He’s helped me develop as a player and as a person.”Mr. Berhalter added that Mr. Pochettino made the players even prouder to represent their country.That cultural transformation may ultimately prove to be his most important contribution. The Americans won consecutive games at the World Cup for the first time since 1930, advanced from their group with a match to spare and recorded three victories in a single tournament for the first time.The run ended with a sobering 4-1 defeat to Belgium in the round of 16, but the enthusiasm surrounding the program remained strong. Mr. Pochettino had spoken about the tournament’s “magic” when he signed his extension, and there was genuine optimism that the best was still ahead.His departure doesn’t erase the progress, but it does introduce uncertainty into a program that believed it had finally found its long-term leader.

U.S. Soccer Must Start Over After Pochettino’s Unexpected Exit for Manchester United

U.S. Soccer Must Start Over After Pochettino’s Unexpected Exit for Manchester United

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