Mauricio Pochettino is set to leave his role as United States men's national team head coach to join Manchester United after the current USMNT camp concludes, ending a two-year tenure that included the 2026 World Cup on home soil.
His final games will be the two-legged Concacaf Nations League semifinals against Haiti, with the first leg on Saturday at Miami's Nu Stadium and the second leg on Tuesday at Cincinnati's TQL Stadium. Pochettino signed a new four-year contract extension in August but has been linked with a return to the Premier League throughout his stint.
"That news kind of got sprung on us, like the rest of the world, I'd say," USMNT player Robinson said. "Similar things happened in the past, happened at the World Cup where huge teams lose their manager and they start looking at possible candidates and for us to have a manager who's linked with those sorts of jobs means we're very lucky to work with a top-level manager but it never seems to leak into the work we do, whether it's the World Cup or whether it's going to be this camp."
Pochettino was the first USMNT head coach with genuine international appeal, becoming the federation's highest-paid coach when he arrived in 2024 after spells at Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain, and Chelsea. AC Milan considered him before hiring Ruben Amorim. U.S. Soccer CEO J.T. Batson said in May: "He had standing offers from other places to come. He wanted to be here. He's a big believer in what we're doing at U.S. Soccer... Mauricio and team have been incredibly transparent. They've been great partners."
Manchester United are currently in the relegation zone with one win in 10 games, the fewest of any team in the Premier League this season.
Pochettino's record with the USMNT stands at 21 wins in 45 games, nearly all against teams ranked below the U.S. The team exited the World Cup in the round of 16 with a loss to Belgium, failing to advance past the last-16 barrier that has stood since 2010. However, he implemented an entertaining, high-intensity, attack-minded system that is a hallmark of his coaching career but historically difficult to integrate at international level.
He maximized attacking talents such as Folarin Balogun and Christian Pulisic, while integrating players previously overlooked like midfielder Malik Tillman and forward Ricardo Pepi. Defender Alex Freeman emerged from obscurity at Orlando City to become a World Cup starter and goalscorer in under 500 days, and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, son of Pochettino's predecessor, became a national team fixture after his first call-up in 2025. Rising prospects Cavan Sullivan and Adri Mehmeti are poised to become leading figures for the program.
Pochettino leaves the USMNT in a position of strength with a clear roadmap toward the 2030 World Cup. His tenure demonstrated that the next head coach should primarily be a strong tactical fit, emphasizing an attack-minded approach that suits a player pool rich in offensive talent.
