At last, the cat’s finally out of the bag. The US Men’s National Team has officially announced the arrival of Mauricio Pochettino as their new manager. The word came just around just before the American boys were gearing up for their September window’s friendly clash against Canada. As the word of his arrival spreads around the town, Pochettino shared in the meantime what actually ‘inspired‘ him to take up the US job.

A burning excitement can be smelled within here as they finally got to hear the good news just a few days after the team endured a poor 1-2 defeat against Canada. In spite of what the result may be during today’s clash, hear out what the new USMNT boss has to say about joining his first-ever international rank.

As compiled by journalist Jeff Carlisle on X, Pochettino said, “The decision to join U.S. Soccer wasn’t just about football for me; it’s about the journey that this team and this country are on. The energy, the passion, and the hunger to achieve something truly historic here — those are the things that inspired me.”

Energy, passion, hunger to achieve—Exactly the set of words that any typical American fan would love to hear. Pochettino seems to have done his homework as he surely knows how to get his way quickly within the hearts of his supporters, who will be following his progress and developments closely with an eagle eye until the 2026 World Cup.

Notably, the announcement was touted to be made long ago, at least before the September window, while USMNT was gearing up to face Canada and New Zealand. Sadly, unexpected delays kept happening; having known they had won the race to sign their new manager, the finish line kept moving forward. But of course, there were valid reasons for such hiccups in his arrival.

Regardless, it’s just a matter of time before Mauricio Pochettino will be seen wearing USA colors and sitting at the dugout with an ambition to be the difference maker. While hearing of all this is pretty exciting, things may not pan out exactly the way he would want.

Mauricio Pochettino won’t be having a ‘nice fat cigar’ every time with USMNT

Liverpool icon Steve Nicol earlier warned the 52-year-old of building a narrative in his mind that coaching USMNT is a ‘No pressure’ job. The former PSG tactician should be vary of all kinds of surprises that he may get if things potentially go south under his leadership. “If he thinks he’s coming over here to have a nice fat cigar, as soon as he starts losing games, there will be a little bit of dissent,” said Nicol on ESPN FC.

Having managed players like Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Harry Kane as well as teams like PSG, Chelsea, and Tottenham, the 52-year-old shall brace for out-of-the-box things in the States, where the audience demands ‘silky soccer.’ Concluding the warning, Nicol said, “If Pochettino takes over and doesn’t get results. It will be like wait a minute, this guy was supposed to churn out our ‘golden generation’. What is he turning them into?”

Surely, all eyes will now be on Mauricio Pochettino, who is expected to be the lucky charm of a struggling USMNT. It remains to be seen how well of a hiring he turns out to be.