Build the relationships, build the trust, build a lightness—A philosophy that did wonders for Emma Hayes. Not only was the English tactician able to lead the USWNT to gold at the Paris Olympics, but she also forged strong bonds among the players. Following in her footsteps, Mauricio Pochettino now seems to be adopting a similar approach with the USMNT, focusing on establishing ‘simple‘ principles among his players.

“The most important thing is that we need to settle a few principles, a few concepts that I think [will] start to develop with time,” said the former Tottenham manager in the presser ahead of beginning the October international window. Besides setting various codes, the 52-year-old will also look to instill a typical set of standards that exist within the beautiful game and would also align with their competitive goals.

“I think from the beginning, we are going to be very simple, to settle the principles and to build the relationship first.” Before building on-pitch awareness and connections, Pochettino simultaneously wants the group to focus on building off-pitch relationships as well. “I think both on and off the pitch [relationships] are really important in the way that we are going to create but from the beginning, we are going to be very simple, very clear, and our ideas and concept,” added the former PSG boss.

Further, the Argentine coach also wants each player on his team to be well acquainted with the technical and coaching staff of the national team. That way, both players and coaches can fluidly share their needs that also align with their goals accordingly. “It’s really important also to provide or to dictate in the way that we are going to act and the way that we are going to expect things from the staff. The players need to know very well what we are going to ask and expect from them,” concluded Mauricio.

Indeed, a rather well-rehearsed philosophy that Hayes employed for the American ladies. Even USWNT star Casey Murphy once mentioned to Essentially Sports in an exclusive interview, “It was all about coming in and creating the best team culture possible.” So we may expect similar efforts from Pochettino. In fact, the process is already underway!

Here’s how the first training session went for USMNT stars under Mauricio Pochettino

Recently, the defender duo of Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson addressed the press from the USMNT camp just after their first training session ended. Interestingly, neither of the stars was shy about sharing their experience under Pochettino as they agreed about the intensity of training. The former Tottenham manager’s signature style has already left its mark, with players accepting the high-demanding, high-energy atmosphere has quickly become the norm.

In fact, the squad is adjusting to the 52-year-old tactician’s methods well even though it has been just Day 1 at the office. Moreover, both Ream and Robinson further acknowledged that multiple individual meetings were held between players and the new staff. This was conducted to forge a better connection with each other and establish a strong base for communication from scratch. Indeed, it’s a good sign that things are on a natural progression.