USMNT’s Gold Cup final defeat to Mexico a microcosm of its summer

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HOUSTON — The lessons of this summer were fully on display in the U.S. men’s national team’s 2-1 loss to Mexico on Sunday night in the Concacaf Gold Cup final.

The U.S. gutted its way to the tournament’s championship game, slaloming through a path of opponents it was supposed to beat. Mexico was a real test. Quality-wise, it was the best team this group of players had faced since losses to Turkey and Switzerland in pre-Gold Cup friendlies.

The U.S. fought the best it could. It even took an early lead. But it was clear that the quality of Mexico would prevail — and it did. Mexico dominated long stretches of Sunday’s final. It created dangerous opportunities and forced the U.S. into uncomfortable moments. It held 60 percent possession, won the expected goals battle and dominated in shots (16-6) and shots on target (8-3).

Mexico was the better side.

But in the process of reaching the final, it was important for U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino to try to send a message to the wider national team pool, with many players missing this tournament due to injury or club duties. The Nations League losses in March were a massive red flag that the team needed to find its identity again. When star winger Christian Pulisic opted to skip this tournament, Pochettino sensed just how much work there was to do to reset expectations around this group.

Pochettino’s standard was easy enough: show how much you care. Show how much you want to be here.

That’s why wins by a group filled with players who were on the fringe of the national team — even expected wins over weaker teams like Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica and Guatemala — meant something. It was validation that heart, belief and effort mattered a lot. It made this team’s identity stronger. And it’s why players talked this week about the “family” feel around the group.

But quality matters, too.

At the end of the day, that same belief and effort and emotion will also be on the other side of the field. Mexico players were here to prove how much they cared about their badge, too. They had gone through a similar process to what Pochettino is attempting to navigate with the U.S.

“I see that they want to be here, they want to be here, and that fills me with pride, because, like I said, years ago there was open discontent—complaints about the bonuses, the trips, this or that,” Mexico coach Javier Aguirre said. “Well, I won’t name names, but back then, I didn’t see that joy about coming to represent your country, you know? Even though you have to come practically for free. And now, well, I think that’s been achieved, right? That the players come wanting to be here. And I really believe that.

“The fans notice it, they feel it, they see the commitment, they see it, and they don’t abandon us. They’re there. And I think a lot about the people up there in the stands. It’s a sacrifice, being there with their families, carrying kids, the players’ wives going from one hotel to another, on the planes. That’s deserving of merit—the people who surround us, the Mexican fans and our families, because they support us and motivate us so much.”

That’s why what comes next from Pochettino is as important as the foundation he laid within the group this summer.

Pochettino now has the difficult task of reintegrating important players who weren’t around this summer, and doing it without losing some of the mentality that was created over the past 40 days together. But he has to find a way to do it. Because when the World Cup comes, Pochettino will need players like Antonee Robinson, Sergiño Dest, Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Weston McKennie, Tim Weah and, yes, Pulisic.

On Sunday night, the sting of the loss still fresh, Pochettino wasn’t ready to talk about players who weren’t in Houston. He gave a wink at the end of one answer saying not to worry, that his staff is always watching and evaluating every player in the pool. But Pochettino had other messages he wanted to get out first.

First, he was ready to wrestle with the missed calls he felt cost his team the game: A 66th-minute handball in the box that wasn’t called on Jorge Sánchez but would’ve given the U.S. a penalty kick — and maybe the lead. A foul called on Diego Luna to set up the game-winning goal that Pochettino felt was erroneous. A Mexican player who was offside blocking Chris Richards from getting into the right defensive spot on Edson Álvarez’s goal.

Pochettino said the refs would have given the penalty the other way in front of a crowd that mostly supported Mexico and that “it was embarrassing to see that situation.” The insinuation was that Concacaf had less concern with calls going against the U.S.

“My players don’t deserve this,” Pochettino said. “If we lose, we lose. No problem. I am the first to say we need to improve. I am not crying. I am not saying [anything] against Mexico. I respect Mexico, full respect, and I congratulated (them) from the beginning. I only say that if that happened again Mexico, would the coach or the players (be) talking the same way? For me, it will be a fire in the stadium. But for us, it’s like, ‘OK, they’re nice guys.’ You know? ‘They’re nice guys. It’s not a problem.’

“For me, it’s tough. It’s tough not to tell the truth. We need to tell the truth and the truth is that today we lose. Yes, we lose. We need to be critical with [ourselves], of course. But the reality is there, everyone can see. Through TV, through here (in the stadium). Then we can analyze all that came after.”

Pochettino also again implored the U.S. fans to come out to the stadium to support the team — both in the lead up to next summer’s World Cup and in the tournament itself. For a second straight game, the U.S. played in a stadium filled with its rival’s fans. That is nothing new for any American fan, player or leader who has watched soccer in this country over the past few decades.

But Pochettino said he hoped fans could understand how important they are to transferring energy to the players on the field. It’s almost channeling the same idea Aguirre talked about — about how the fans appreciated the team’s increased desire, and how they then carry that forward with them into games by traveling to support the team.

“There’s one thing in soccer that I want to explain, [it’s] how important the fans are,” Pochettino said. “When I used to play soccer, for every soccer player, when you have the support of the fans, it regenerates the football player’s energy on the field. And also, when you don’t have it and the atmosphere is against you, it drains your energy much more, right? And it makes everything harder, and the energy always has to be regenerated internally and come from within.

“I think in the last two matches, in four days, the team felt that a bit. Beyond the fact that we played well and had a good tournament, I think it would have been different if we had had two stadiums where the crowd was reversed, not so much against us. Guatemala in St. Louis—90 [percent for Guatemala] and 10 for the USA—and today instead of 70,000, well, I’m not saying 70, but if there had been 60- or 50,000 of our own people supporting us, it surely would have been a bit different. But, well, that’s the situation we have to deal.”

Part of that will be decided by how well the U.S. performs.

The U.S. played in front of pro-American crowds during the Copa América, but fell in the group stage. This team hasn’t given much for the fans to be excited about since. We’ll see, too, whether U.S. Soccer sets ticket prices with an eye on accessibility for more American fans in order to fill stadiums and generate support before the World Cup, or if it prioritizes revenue instead. Pochettino might be able to influence those decisions.

More importantly, though, he can’t lose sight of the lessons of this tournament. Pochettino did well to get the most out of this group. He identified a handful of players that can add to the competitiveness of the pool. He rebounded from the program’s longest losing streak in 18 years. He set a standard for what he expects.

“There’s a few non-negotiables now,” U.S. center back Chris Richards said. “This camp was kind of a game-changer. … When the guys come back into camp, I think these are some things that we have to hold each other accountable for. And hopefully moving forward we can add a little bit more quality to it, as well, and we’re going to be a really tough team to beat.”

That last part is crucial. There are just 10 games left in official international windows before the World Cup kicks off. Time is running short. If this Gold Cup is going to be seen as a success, it’s going to be because Pochettino finds a way to inject the mindset of this hungry group of challengers into the entire pool of players – the part that can add that quality.

That task starts in September.

(Top photo: Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images)