All eyes turn to Mauricio Pochettino and his future after the USMNT’s exit from the 2026 World Cup.
The topic of conversation very much revolved around Folarin Balogun and his red card overturn ahead of the Round of 16 clash with Belgium.
But not even he was able to help the USMNT’s cause, as Belgium ran riot at the Lumen Field.
However, it was always going to be an uphill task with Belgium given every incentive to go out and put on a performance that sent a message to FIFA and Donald Trump after all the controversy.
The co-hosts crash OUT of the World Cup
What will Donald Trump have to say to get them out of this one? 👀
And with the departure from competition, the talk now turns to Mauricio Pochettino and his future as the USA head coach, which he remained tight-lipped on after the World Cup exit.
But if his speech to his players in the locker room is anything to go by, then there has been no suggestion that he is about to pack his bags and leave.
Mauricio Pochettino’s speech to the USMNT players in the locker room
Despite crashing out at the Round of 16 stage, the players can hold their heads high and that’s exactly how Mauricio Pochettino feels.
Speaking after the loss to Belgium, Tyler Adams shared what Pochettino told him and his teammates in the locker room.
“Yeah, that tonight can’t be a direct reflection of what we were trying to accomplish. Because, again, you have good days and you have bad days. And today was one of our bad days, and it got the best of us.
“I think we came out here with the ambition that we could go really far in this tournament. We didn’t, obviously, go as far as we’d like. That being said, if we inspired just a few kids throughout this journey, then we did something right.
“I wish we could have won tonight. The fans deserved it. The support that we’ve had over the past few weeks, they deserve it. The people back home deserve it. So, yeah, I can’t thank the fans enough. I can’t thank this coaching staff, the support staff, and everyone that supported us throughout this journey enough. They’ve helped us grow, and we’ve gone through tough times and amazing times throughout this journey. Right now is a tough time, but we’ll grow from it.”
When Mauricio Pochettino took the job in late 2024 on a historic $6 million-a-year deal, making him the highest-paid coach in U.S. Soccer history, the contract was intentionally structured as a short-term, 22-month agreement set to expire immediately at the end of the 2026 World Cup.
And it’s believed that U.S. Soccer has already presented Pochettino with a formal four-year contract extension offer to lead the program through the 2030 World Cup cycle.
So we shall see what the future holds.
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