The air surrounding the US Men’s National Team is filled with optimism. With less than a couple of years until they host the 2026 World Cup, the Stars and Stripes are keen to do something on their home soil like never before. At least, that seems to be the idea after hearing from Antonee Robinson on how Mauricio Pochettino is instilling a ‘winning mentality’ within the Golden Generation of America.

“Really looking forward to it,” remarked the Fulham star about the prestigious tournament being hosted in his nation while speaking to WhoScored.com. “I think just in general, forgetting the bias of myself playing for the U.S., I think it could shape up to be one of the best World Cups ever, one of the biggest sporting events ever.” Hoping to play a significant role for his team, Robinson has his ‘fingers crossed’ that all of his teammates give their best and are fit throughout the tournament.

Further doubling down on his expectations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, he added, “The ultimate goal is trying to win the World Cup on home soil; that would be an unbelievable achievement.” To be fair, making such a powerful statement wouldn’t have been possible with the self-belief that the USMNT stars have been able to find with the help of just one name: Mauricio Pochettino—in fact, it’s something that Robinson himself recognizes.

“With the new manager coming in as well, I think he’s really trying to get the message across. One, we’ve got a good team, we need to be confident in ourselves and he wants us to feel like winners. Whether that’s playing amazing football and winning the game, or be rough and dirty and dig deep and finding a way to win that might be unconventional to how we set up at the time. He just wants us to have that sort of winning mentality,” concluded Robinson.

Indeed, these claims are a testament to the fact that Pochettino has truly turned things around in the locker room. Surely, we never got to witness such positivity and optimism among the American boys, and they’ll be looking to make the best in the tournament, especially Robinson, who seems to be in Mauricio’s special plans!

Mauricio Pochettino hints at ‘different plans’ surrounding Antonee Robinson

The former Tottenham manager shared his thoughts on the evolving fullback role during the post-match press conference after the USMNT’s 5-2 aggregate quarterfinal victory over Jamaica. Pochettino was impressed with Fulham player Robinson’s performance, noting his solid play and assist. “Antonee, it’s a position we always developed wherever we go in other teams looking always to have some diversity, especially on the buildup,” said the 52-year-old tactician.

“We will have different plans, so we will look to play different and don’t give out too much information of our game plan to the opposition,” Pochettino mentioned, hoping that Robinson will collaborate with full-back Joseph Scally in the future to tailor strategies based on the opponent. Of course, regardless of formation, having a wide player helps a team stretch the defense and create attacking opportunities, something Robinson is executing well.

In short, expect that something is cooking between USMNT and Mauricio Pochettino for the 2026 gig!