- Holden questioned several of Pochettino’s decisions
- Didn’t understand the thought process on defense
- Says U.S. must get a win against a top opponent
Following a 2-0 loss to كوريا الجنوبية on Saturday night, the USMNT are now winless in their last seven matches against non-North American top-25 opponents, being outscored 17-3 in that span. It is a worrying sign for former U.S. star Stu Holden, who says manager Mauricio Pochettino needs to find a rhythm with the team ahead of the كأس العالم.
“This is the وطني team 10 months away from the World Cup,” Holden said on the “State of the Union” podcast. “If you’re going to experiment and you have different partnerships, some of that is expected. But tactically, the discipline, the way the U.S. looks in and out of shape, it’s more concerning for me than it is encouraging from what I saw in this game.”
Holden pointed to numerous tactical decisions by Pochettino, including the manager’s call to start Tristan Blackmon in his first U.S. game, which led to issues against Son Heung-Min and the South Korea attack.
“Let’s be honest, Tristan Blackmon was pretty underwhelming,” Holden said. “I was interested in trying to figure out what Pochettino was really asking of him. Especially when the U.S. were in possession, he was squeezing very tight. And then even defensively, when the U.S. were in their own half defending, he was playing very aggressively. And that’s actually what led to that first goal by South Korea.”
Blackmon wasn’t the only player who had issues for the U.S. Holden called out other tactical flaws, saying, “We had no pressure on the ball, and the lines were disconnected.”
Despite the loss, Pochettino stressed that the USMNT have improved, evidenced by bettering South Korea in both shots taken and possession. Yet the team was shut out.
“The fact is, again, we didn’t score a goal. Again, we didn’t beat a top-25 opponent, which we haven’t done since the 2022 World Cup,” Holden said. “And once again, we’re left with more questions than answers.”
Holden suggested that Pochettino consider a five-man backline and start another centerback with Chris Richards and Tim Ream, which could create more freedom for the attack.
“It alleviates a little bit of defensive pressure on [Christian] Pulisic and [Tim] Weah, from [Diego] Luna, from whoever is on the forward part of the field,” Holden said. “I just think Pochettino now has to start transitioning his head to start thinking ‘We can’t beat top opponents, we need to stop conceding goals against top opponents.’
“To go far in the World Cup, you need to start beating top opponents. We can’t do it in the formation that we have. He’s even said it himself, that this is the last window for experimentation… Formation may indeed be a part of the problem.”
Josh Sargent made the start at striker against South Korea, but struggled before being subbed off for Folarin Balogun in the second half. Holden said the way the U.S. are being set up in attack doesn’t allow the team to get the best out of Championship‘s leading striker.
“He is a guy who thrives off crosses in the box – we don’t cross the ball,” Holden said. “Josh Sargent, his average position was deeper than Diego Luna… It’s just this hodgepodge in the middle, and there’s no width. There’s nothing dynamic in the way they were creating.”
The U.S. will now look to regroup when they face اليابان on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio.
