United States soccer coach Mauricio Pochettino warned Thursday that his team faces an extremely challenging World Cup opener against Paraguay on Friday, cautioning that the South American squad poses a serious threat despite the hosts being considered favorites.
The Americans kick off their World Cup journey at Los Angeles Stadium in Group D, carrying the weight of expectations that comes with hosting the tournament on home turf. Pochettino noted his squad has reached the competition in excellent physical, tactical and emotional form.
However, the Argentine coach, drawing from his extensive playing and coaching experience with South American teams, emphasized that Gustavo Alfaro’s Paraguay squad will present significant obstacles.
“I know very well the mentality, the aggressivity, the competitivity,” Pochettino shared with reporters on Thursday.
“Paraguay showed in qualification for this World Cup how tough it is to play against them and how they performed so well. They beat Argentina, Brazil. My expectation is tomorrow is going to be a very tough game.
“They have good quality and a great coach in Gustavo Alfaro who I respect and admire him a lot.”
Pochettino, who was brought in during 2024 to guide the US through their home World Cup, expressed optimism about his team’s development in recent months, especially highlighting their final two preparation matches — a 3-2 victory over Senegal and a close 2-1 loss to Germany.
According to the coach, these performances demonstrated to his players that they can compete effectively against top-tier international competition.
“The last two games allowed us to think and to feel that it’s possible to do whatever we want and compete in our best way, and to compete with big teams,” he explained.
The coach emphasized that his team has shown improvement beyond just tactical elements, noting significant mental growth and the players’ acceptance of higher standards within the national team program.
“I think they are much better players. The mindset is starting to change,” he said.
Regarding team selection, Pochettino confirmed that all 26 roster players are healthy and ready for selection, including defender Chris Richards, who had been recovering from an ankle injury.
While the coach has finalized his goalkeeper choice, he remained secretive about whether Matt Turner or Matt Freese would start between the posts.
“I decided,” Pochettino stated when questioned about his starting formation. “The starting 11 is there, unless something happens before the game.”
When asked if the goalkeepers had been notified of his decision, he smiled and responded: “I don’t know if they know, because if I tell you they know, you are going to start to call them.”
The Argentine stressed that his team must demonstrate freedom and passion in their play to energize home supporters and create positive momentum throughout the tournament.
“What we can do is contagious,” he noted. “We need to play with passion. We need to win games, so important, but play with passion and make the fans feel proud about what they are seeing on the field.”
When pressed to define what would constitute success for the United States in this tournament, Pochettino gave a direct response.
“For me, success is win,” he declared. “It’s win tomorrow and win after tomorrow.
“When we signed here, it’s because we wanted to come here and be involved in this unique event, but with the possibility to compete well and a belief in winning.”
