The U.S. men’s national team offered more food for thought as Mauricio Pochettinno’s period of experimentation came to a close on Tuesday with a 2-0 win over Japan, but this time, the trials and tribulations of the last several months made way for an honest glimpse at the potential match between the head coach and his players.
Pochettino rolled out his team in a 3-4-3, the back three introduced in Saturday’s 2-0 loss to South Korea and serving as the lone bright spot after another dismal performance for the group. The formation switch, though, perfectly paved the way for the style of organized chaos he wants his team to play, the foundation of which is a stable defense Chris Richards, the USMNT’s most reliable defender for some time, was an easy choice for selection but the back three also suited the aging Tim Ream fairly well and Tristan Blackmon, who recovered from a shaky debut performance against South Korea.
The trio perfectly paved the way for chaos, in this case providing the freedom for the more attack-minded players to accomplish their tasks at the other end of the pitch. A handful of USMNT players took advantage of the chances afforded to them by Pochettino’s insistence on experimentation, most notable among them the goal scorers. After an injury-plagued year, Folarin Balogun reasserted himself as the USA’s top contender for the No. 9 role with a goal in the 64th minute, combining seamlessly with Christian Pulisic during his first start under Pochettino.
The goal likely offered a sense of relief for Balogun and Pochettino alike – Josh Sargent and Patrick Agyemang have been the main contenders for that job in Balogun’s absence, neither truly staking their claim. Sargent’s opportunities continue to pass him by, taking zero shots and having just 17 touches in a 62-minute shift against South Korea, Balogun outpacing him with 30 touches, four shots and a goal in 79 minutes on Tuesday against Japan. There will likely still be competition for minutes with nine months to go until the World Cup, and Ricardo Pepi could throw a wrench in his positional rivals’ plans if he hits his stride once he returns to the national team after a long-term injury. For the first time in a long time, though, the USMNT may have an answer to a long-lasting question with Balogun as the default No. 9, removing a sizable degree of uncertainty from the U.S.’ lineup as the World Cup rapidly approaches.
The surprise star of the evening, though, was Alex Zendejas, whose stock definitely rose with the game’s opening goal in the 30th minute. The winger has played his first games this month for the USMNT since brief substitute appearances last November, translating his strong form for Club America to a meaningful outing with the national team. Zendejas may also just be a perfect fit for Pochettino’s new-look system since it resembles his role with his club – fresh off a 10-goal campaign, he is off to a strong start with two goals in 11 games in all competitions to start the season.
Amidst the ups and downs of the last several months, Pochettino’s experimentation has paved the way for unexpected players to reasonably enter the conversation for World Cup spots, the list of contenders noticeably different than it was a year ago. Zendejas is the latest but wingbacks Max Arfsten and Alex Freeman to make their cases, even if it is more likely that they contend to be the respective understudies to Antonee Robinson and Sergino Dest. Like the other players in the wingback pool, Arfsten and Freeman have notable attack-minded tendencies and Arfsten, in particular was able to showcase that with an assist to Zendejas’ goal.
Pochettino’s formation change was the foundation for just about everything that went well on Tuesday; even those who are essentially locks for the World Cup roster like Pulisic and Tyler Adams, next to a steady Cristian Roldan in midfield, looked closer to their best. For perhaps the first time in his 11 months on the job, it felt like the head coach found a gameplan that suited the players at his disposal and the match in front of him, the disjointed and mishap-prone version of the team replaced by one that demonstrated some version of cohesion. Pochettino has long championed an organized chaos defined by offensive freedom and an aggressive off-the-ball approach but on Tuesday, it was finally on display.
This is merely a starting point for the USMNT, some imperfections still easy to spot against Japan. There is no particular shame in being a work in progress with nine months still on the clock, though. The only true expectation for a team at this stage of their World Cup preparation is a signal that they are on the right track and at long last, Pochettino’s USMNT delivered that on Tuesday. In the process, they may have laid the groundwork to live up to the potential many have believed this team has always had and at the very least, delivered a new measuring stick after months of discouraging performances.
USMNT’s room for improvement
The imperfections do not negate the positives the USMNT can take away from their win against Japan, though there is one notable asterisk to the result – the Samurai Blue fielded a fully rotated team, making 11 changes from the 0-0 draw against Mexico on Saturday.
It puts the entire performance in context, especially true for the attacking group led by Balogun and Pulisic. The USMNT outshot Japan 19 to 11, putting 11 shots on target and generating 2.01 expected goals to the opponents’ 1.08, but it was hard to shake the feeling that the hosts could have been a little more clinical in attack. Balogun and Pulisic each took four shots but were a little wasteful with their first half opportunities, something that is hopefully a fixable problem for two talented players who still managed to come out of the game with their important second half contribution.
On the other end of the pitch, Matt Freese got the nod once again in goal and has now started nine of the USMNT’s last 10 matches, potentially setting up for a showdown between the New York City FC goalkeeper at the New England Revolution’s Matt Turner, who has been the U.S.’ longtime No. 1. Freese is a strong shot-stopper and really made a name for himself with his skill on penalty kicks during the Concacaf Gold Cup, but he is better at some parts of the job than others. Freese is shakier on crosses and set pieces and had a few nervy moments, leaving some questions unanswered on a night where a handful of other players did what they could to improve their standing in the race for World Cup roster spots.
