GOAL US writers discuss how much this tournament mattered, big picture, considering Pulisic and other regulars were missing
Was it all inevitable, all along? The USMNT lost to Mexico in the final of the Gold Cup on Sunday night. Sports are rarely predictable, but this just felt right. The U.S. were good. Mexico were better. The U.S. played well. Mexico are more talented. There was a gap in quality, and when it came down to it, that gap was a bit too wide for the U.S. to bridge.
But that doesn't make a loss easier to take. It doesn't alleviate the disappointment for Mauricio Pochettino, his team, or even the fans. The U.S. tripped on the final hurdle. That will sting.
But some things are worth digging into here. The first is that this was a depleted roster, with a number of players trying to make their case for a spot in the team next year. The second is that the tournament followed a pair of embarrassing international friendly losses. The third – and this might be the most encouraging – is that a divided fan base seems to have come together, at least just a little bit.
Did this tournament matter much, big picture, considering Christian Pulisic and a number of other regulars were out? Can the USMNT's run to the final be considered a success?
GOAL US writers break it all down in the latest edition of… The Rondo.
Getty ImagesOverall, was the USMNT Gold Cup campaign a success?
Tom Hindle: Undoubtedly. The U.S. were the third-best team in the tournament, made it to the final, and then lost by one goal to the best one. There is absolutely no shame in that. This isn't a "moral victory" as much as a team playing to its potential. That's good enough.
Jacob Schneider: Absolutely. Pochettino had several relatively new players – Diego Luna, Malik Tillman among them – break out unexpectedly, and now join the ranks of the A squad to build out the player pool. That is all that matters.
Ryan Tolmich: In golf terms, we’ll call it par. Ultimately, the USMNT beat the teams they were supposed to beat and lost to the teams they were supposed to lose to, so nothing much to take away there. The important thing was that several players took steps forward, namely Tillman, Luna and Chris Richards. Some others, such as Johnny Cardoso, did not. Ultimately, it was all pretty OK, and that’s about it.
Alex Labidou: No, success would be winning it all. But Pochettino and his staff still have plenty to be encouraged about. Prior to this tournament, depth was a reasonable concern for the Americans and now, there is competition for several spots, not just striker and goalkeeper. There are some naiveties that Pochettino needs to rectify. Hearing the Argentine complain about a pro-Mexico crowd? For decades, that has long been a factor in the Gold Cup final, whether its played in Houston, Denver, or Los Angeles. It's something he should've known and factored in. In terms of tactics, once the U.S. scored in the opening five minutes, it was one-way traffic for Mexico in possession and attack. Pochettino is an attack-minded coach, but he would have been better served by making moves to bunker down and get the result as opposed to chasing the win in regular time. He waited too long to make changes. It is worth noting Pochettino has managed in six cup finals, and the two he won were with PSG.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportWhat's Pochettino's main takeaway?
TH: That there is a massive drop off between his starters and reserves. Sure, some players made a case here – Tillman and Luna spring to mind. But wow it is BLEAKonce you look at the bench. You're thinking about World Cup quarterfinals and looking at Sebastian Berhalter to help you get there? Not happening.
JS: He needs to figure out his substitution windows. Second, there was probably a realization during this tournament that he shouldn’t have relied so heavily on domestic talent. He opted against some players in Europe – such as Josh Sargent – calling them “football decisions.” That left some potentially key contributors on the sideline.
RT: That there is a clear divide between the players that are World Cup quality and those that are not. He learned that against Switzerland and, again, over the course of the Gold Cup. It was clear who Pochettino believed he could rely on. There were tiers of World Cup guys, of course, but it’s also clear that there were some players not at that level – and that the pool only goes so deep.
AL: Pochettino will look back to this tournament as one in which he identified several new young players he can trust – such as Luna and Berhalter (though not as a starter). And he also learned more about guys in the periphery, such as Tillman and Patrick Agyemang. All four could play a role – or see increased minutes – when the U.S. have their full squad together this fall.
Getty Images SportWas Mexico's win deserved?
TH: 1000000000 percent. Better team throughout the tournament, better performers on the night.
JS: Best team at the tournament, 100-percent deserved. Javier Aguirre should be thrilled – now for Mexico, it’s about preparing for 2026.
RT: They were the tournament’s most consistent team, so sure. At the end of the day, their best players stepped up to the occasion and made the difference, which is what cup finals are all about. Is this history’s strongest Mexico team? No chance. But they were the best this summer, which is all that mattered.
AL: When you have 61-percent possession and eight shots on target as opposed to three for the USMNT, you are expected to win – and Mexico did just that. Yes, Pochettino has a right to be aggrieved over the missed handball call, but one could also argue Mexico should have been up by at least two or three goals by the end of the match. Kudos to Aguirre, who has seemingly reinvigored El Tri and appears to have Pochettino's number at the moment.
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(C)Getty ImagesAre the USMNT now better prepared for the World Cup?
TH: Yes and no. If the goal here was to win it, then obviously not. But there were a few learnings about the squad, and it's nice to get the fan base to all be friends again a little bit. A bit of unity never hurt anybody, and the good vibes here might be enough.
JS: Hard to say. September will serve as better judgement.
RT: Yes, but not as much as they could have been. In an ideal world, the full team would have had these 40 days together, something those in camp called a real brotherhood-forming experience. While those bonds were being formed, Christian Pulisic and several other key figures were watching from afar. How does it all fit together now? How much could they have benefitted from these six weeks? We’ll never know. But at the very least, the 26 in camp did get stronger, individually and as a unit.
AL: Yes, they went into the summer relying on oft-benched Gio Reyna as their fourth-best player (at one point, arguably second) and had more passengers than drivers on the squad. Now, one could make the case that Richards is a key star for the U.S. and their top five could be Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Richards, Antonee Robinson and either Luna or Tillman – that's how good both were at times during this Gold Cup run. If Pochettino can ever get a healthy Folarin Balogun on the squad, along with Ricardo Pepi, that list might change. But this team is more well-rounded than it was entering the summer.