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Pressure mounts on Pochettino after 2-0 loss to Korea

Published: 08 Sep. 2025, 12:37 Updated: 08 Sep. 2025, 16:42

U.S. national team manager Mauricio Pochettino, left, instructs players during a friendly against Korea at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey on Sept. 6. [YONHAP]

U.S. national team manager Mauricio Pochettino is facing growing criticism after his side lost 2-0 to Korea in a friendly on Saturday in Harrison, New Jersey.

The loss, which featured a dominant performance by Son Heung-min, drew harsh scrutiny from U.S. media, with a report from The Athletic saying the United States looked "outmatched in quality against Korea" and was "shredded and beaten."

Son opened the scoring in the 18th minute, calmly finishing a pass from Lee Jae-sung after eluding defender Tristan Blackmon, who made his first cap.

The second goal came in the 43rd minute after a fluid passing exchange between Son and Lee broke down the U.S. back line and set up Lee Dong-gyeong for the finish.

The Athletic report criticized Pochettino's experimental lineup.

"Head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s experiments — including Blackmon, a 29-year-old MLS journeyman, at center back and Sebastian Berhalter in midfield — were exposed as moves that probably shouldn’t be repeated," The Athletic said.

Although Pochettino justified the lineup as an effort to evaluate new options ahead of the World Cup, analysts argue the result raised doubts about the team's competitiveness.

The article noted that the United States is now "winless in its last five A-team games against non-Concacaf opposition."

The report also highlighted the pro-Korean atmosphere in the stadium. It described how Korean players received a louder reception when they appeared for pregame warmup.

"Korean flags big and small were draped over seats, waving in the air, and surrounding one lone U.S. supporters section," it said.

Analysts said this trend has become a pattern in recent U.S. matches.
With the 2026 World Cup approaching, pressure is mounting for the U.S. national team to deliver results.

The United States next faces Japan on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio. Japan drew 0-0 with Mexico in its last match.

"In normal circumstances, they would not be expected to beat Japan — arguably the best team Pochettino’s U.S. will have faced," the Athletic report said. "Now, they almost have to get a result to avoid immense pressure coming out of the September window. If they don’t, their struggles will start to approach a pre-World Cup crisis."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY LEE HAY-JUNE [[email protected]]