Spend sufficient time with U. S. Men’s National Team coach Mauricio Pochettino, and you may hear him repeat just a few key phrases advert nauseam. Struggle, for one. Togetherness. Spirit. Connection.
One phrase, although, has cropped up extra usually than another: depth. It is Pochettino’s nice white whale, his obsession; hearken to him earlier than or after any USMNT recreation and you may hear him deliver it up prefer it’s a very powerful factor within the universe.
Pochettino lamented the USMNT’s lack of depth in the course of the group’s March camp, evaluating the squad unfavorably to France’s and Colombia’s (who performed one another throughout the identical time interval.)
“They performed like this was the ultimate of the World Cup!” Pochettino exclaimed of the 2 sides. “And France, once they noticed the depth and the aggression of Colombia mentioned: ‘If we don’t play as intense, they’ll kill us.’ That’s depth.”
That is what Pochettino needs from his USMNT gamers, but it surely’s not precisely what he is getting. The group struggled to show the depth dial up towards Belgium and Portugal in its March friendlies, dropping 5-2 and 2-0 over the course of three days.
For a lot of USMNT followers, the reply to this lack of depth lies within the group’s European superstars like Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and (absent by way of damage however quickly to return) Tyler Adams. Push them ahead, get them enjoying with actual chunk, and the remaining will observe.
However what if the important thing to the USMNT’s depth lies somewhat nearer to dwelling?
