U.S. men’s national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino isn’t going to allow his star players to pick and choose when they come on international duty.
Pochettino urged those demands during his Saturday press conference ahead of the USMNT’s CONCACAF Gold Cup opener vs. Trinidad & Tobago on Sunday night. Star attacker Christian Pulisic, who was not chosen for the June-July roster, has received plenty of criticism after choosing a period of rest over being with the USMNT in their final competitive window before the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Despite Pulisic’s wishes to take part in the Americans’ two June friendlies against Turkey and Switzerland, Pochettino and his staff decided to leave the 26-year-old off the roster, in order to have one full roster for both sets of matches.
“Players need to listen and to stick with our plan,” Pochettino told media. “They cannot dictate the plan.
“The most important thing is that we explain why we decided not to include him in the two friendly games,” he added. “And then if you have some problems, no, that is not my problem to understand. When I signed my contract in the federation, I am the head coach. I am not a mannequin.”
Pulisic revealed on CBS’ “Call It What You Want” podcast that he didn’t understand Pochettino’s decision to not allow him to be part of the friendly matches, but respected the decision overall. The Pennsylvania native played in 50 matches for AC Milan across all competitions, which marked the most for Pulisic in a single-season of his club career.
However, Pochettino didn’t just want Pulisic to be part of the eventual friendly defeats, he wanted him to be part of the competitive action in the Gold Cup as well. The USMNT enter tonight’s match seeking to end a four-match losing streak in all competitions, which is their worst winless run since 2007.
“It’s true that he wanted to come to be involved in the two friendly games…[but] for us, the Gold Cup is an important tournament,” Pochettino said. “Yes, it was my decision, it was our decision not to include [Pulisic] in the two friendly games, and that’s it.
“It was in our [original] plan to bring him to play in not only the two games, the friendly games, [but] the Gold Cup,” he added.
While Pulisic won’t be involved this summer, Pochettino admitted that he remains in positive communication with his star attacker going forward. Although, Pochettino also expects all players to respect the coaching staff and their decisions, knowing that some players might not agree with all decisions made.
“I love to be in communication with my players,” Pochettino said. “I love to communicate, but at the same time I want to keep that all the players feel the same respect from the coaching staff and for myself, if someone doesn’t like this, then okay.”
Pulisic’s next opportunity to represent the USMNT will come in September when the Americans face South Korea and Japan in a pair of home friendlies (Harrison, N.J. and Columbus, Ohio).
btw, LD’s record and status in the uniform is in another universe from Pulisic’s at this point, not even close, same for Clint, same Howard
LD was 31 when he took his sabbatical, with over 140 caps to his credit at the time. compare those #s to CP’s, will make you laugh (he’s 25 with 66 caps). more, when LD played he was the lone threat almost always, like if he didn’t play we would probably lose; that is simply not the case with CP at all
Beachbum,
Valid points and analogy.
I want to thank Christian for the interview he did. Up until that point, I didn’t understand what was wrong with the US team. I always saw his whining on the verge of tears as his desire to win like Landon, Howard, and Dempsey. Seeing this interview made me realize the weakness actually lies in Pulisic himself. He’s a regular Luke Skywalker before he became a Jedi Knight.
No doubt Christian is talented and, frankly, there’s more to life than soccer. But now I know he feels that way too and it’s not the attitude you want in your team’s best player at the World Cup.
PS: use the force, Christian
Sean,
Love the post and spot on!
IV
Typical. Your reply is just so much noise
Pochettino is the boss. He doesn’t have to prove that.
CP isn’t Landon. He isn’t foolish enough to think the USMNT can’t live without him. Unless he’s a lot stupider than we think he is, he and Pochettino will work it out. But if he is that stupid that will make 2 out of three WC’s that he will miss out on. Fuck him.
Contrary to your opinion, the USMNT is a lot more than CP, Gio, Turner and Cole Campbell.
Pulisic is in the prime of his career. The next world cup will be the best chance he has to fully realize his ceiling. He will be near 28 years old next summer. In ’30 he’ll be almost 32 and most likely past his prime.
Instead of gearing up for the next 13 months, he decided he needs to rest. This is a huge red flag and Poch knows it. Someone with heart and passion goes balls to the wall for the next year. If there was an established team with an established coach, maybe you could excuse this. But the fact that Poch is new, the roster is up in the air AND there will be no other competitive soccer games played by the US after the Gold Cup before the World Cup means Pulisic shouldn’t have even considered resting as an option.
You can’t build a team around a guy who doesn’t get this no matter how talented he is.
Like Landon?
Landon was almost on his way out of the NT at that point, but even in saying that, you can question LD only when CP has done anything close to what Landon did internationally. People forget that Landon, either right before or right after his sabbatical, came back into the usmnt and won the golden ball at the gold cup, and it was also said that he was the fittest person at the pre world cup camp, but Jurgen carried his disdain for him for all.of those years……..point being, he was never going to take LD to the WC, sabbatical or not
I think a lot can be learned from great coaches in other sports. Great coaches do not put down their players in public. The Legendary coach of Alabama, Bear Bryant would take the blame when they lost and give credit to the players when they won. A great story that Bill Walton told about Coach Wooden was when he, Walton, approached Coach Wooden during a pre-season and announced he had decided to grow a beard (there was a no facial hair policy). Walton was already an All American at the time. Coach Wooden said to him, Well, Bill, I’m glad to see you are an independent adult and we are really going to miss you. Walton didn’t grow the beard and nobody knew about that until many years later. Coach Don Coryell who was one of the few coaches to win over 100 games both as a college coach and as a pro coach, was like Bear Bryant. Players are willing to run through brick walls for coaches like that. Yes, you maintain discipline, but you don’t put down your players in public, you talk to them privately and you make sure the team knows the rules and follow them.
That goes both ways.
Gary Page,
What are you talking about??? Pochettino did just that…he talked to Pulisic in PRIVATE and when Pulisic said he didn’t want to play the Gold Cup, Pochettino said, “no problem…I only want one roster.”
That led to a lot of speculation, but if no one ( read: Pulisic ) says anything else, that story line dies on a vine.
Instead, Pulisic got stupid, went on live tv, and in the interest of trying to give off a positive image, he came off as self serving, thinking of “me,” not “we,” and came out a lot worse.
As a result of Pulisic’s live tv appearance, Pochettino was forced to address the situation in a press conference and he did just that. He made it crystal clear to all that it is HIS team and HE is picking the team…now and come World Cup time.
Everybody is about to fall in line…otherwise they will be making commercials during next summer to fill their time off away from the USMNT.
Papi, you’re forgetting the part about all the ex-USMNTers throwing a fit about Pulisic missing gold cup, Landon questioning his commitment, even Dempsey saying he “didn’t understand”. These are US legends and heroes of CP. Who said this on national tv. Of course CP would feel the need to defend himself, anyone would. And I don’t even blame Mark Pulisic for a rather gentle gibe at the incredibly hypocritical criticism from LD, Mr. Sabbatical. But then I’m a dad too, of kids who have been injured playing soccer, and required surgery and months of grueling rehab, all while watching their teammates play.
I read that Pocdhettino contradicted Pulisic and seemed to criticize him by saying he should just follow the rules, doesn’t need to understand them, just follow them and not question them, on a podcast. Pochettino said that on a podcast. Not exactly private.
JB,
I’m not forgetting about the ex-USMNT players. What about them? They are now pundits and doing their job. None of them are wrong, inaccurate, or out of bounds, with their criticism of Pulisic.
Let me guess, Pulisic feels special and entitled such that he feels he shouldn’t be criticized?
You are spot on correct…Landon is hypocritical…but he is not wrong, nor out of bounds, with his criticism of Pulisic.
Tim Howard said it best, “I’m not trying to be their friend…I’m not trying to meet them in the tunnel of the stadium…I’m not a mentor to any of them…I’m holding them accountable.” Tim Howard is a pundit, a former USMNT player, and now a USMNT soccer fan. Again, as a pundit, he is doing his job reporting on soccer, including the USMNT. As a former USMNT, he is holding Pulisic accountable to a historical standard, one that he delves into in great detail. As a USMNT fan, he is asking the questions that we all want to know…”why is Pulisic not playing for the USMNT this summer?”
Fact of the matter is, Pulisic should have been in camp, for the whole time. Since he chose not to, he should have disappeared, shut his trap, and enjoyed his vacation away from the USMNT. Instead he spoke, and showed that he has a severe case of “diarrhea of the mouth.”
And you mention Mark Pulisic. What a clown? What Dad in their right mind even chimes in on that?….let alone is so immature to fight their kids fight? No wonder Pulisic is such a p*ssy.
The Reyna’s got blasted for fighting on behalf of Gio, but Mark Pulisic gets a pass?
It’s unfortunate to hear about your kids and their respective injuries, surgeries, and months of grueling rehab. Most people that have played sports, can relate, myself included. That said, if the concern is about Pulisic gettting injured, then he should just retire and call it a career. There is an inherent risk, a big one at that, when you play professional sports. If Pulisic doesn’t want to get hurt before the World Cup, then Mark Pulisic should wrap him in bubble wrap and bring him out in May of 2026. Oh, and Pulisic should remember to tell AC Milan that he is not going to play the upcoming season because he doesn’t want to get hurt so that he can be healthy for the 2026 World Cup…let’s see how that goes over in Milan.
Pulisic is a clown, and his new nickname is P*ssy-lisic.
It’s too far for me. If you played, then you know the body can only take so much before it breaks down. We only get two knees, two hips, etc. Do you want CP available for the world cup next summer or this year’s gold cup? The guy played his heart out in Qatar, if he says his body needs a break, there’s probably a reason. And I guess I just don’t care so personally that CP isn’t there this summer, I don’t feel this enormous slight that makes me slander someone personally. As a USMNT fan I think it’s a great opportunity for fresh faces to get a shot (Agyemang) and role players to step up (Tillman). I think that has to happen for the team to compete with better teams. This team needs more leaders and that will happen more organically with CP absent. And if enough prove better than him, then he pays the price by being left out.
JB,
Now you are venturing into revisionist history. Pulisic did not say he needed a break…that’s what we thought. He went on live tv and clarified for all what he actually communicated to Pochettino…which was that he wanted to pick and choose the games he played.
Slander, huh? I don’t feel personally slighted…I just call a clown a clown. Since the shoe fits, Pulisic should put the shoe on, lace it up, and wear it, as it fits him.
Agyemang, Arfsten, and Berhalter, are not going to help us compete with better teams. That is a fallacy.
For context, please below:
Christian Pulisic – 26 years old – 24 / 25 season – 50 games, 3,650 minutes
Rodrigo DePaul – 31 years old – 24 / 25 season – 51 games, 3,354 minutes
Fabio Ruiz – 29 years old – 24 / 25 season – 55 games, 3,553 minutes
Kylian Mbappe – 26 years old – 24 / 25 season – 56 games, 4,610 minutes
Harry Kane – 31 years old – 24 / 25 season – 47 games, 3,643 minutes
Marquinhos – 31 years old – 24 / 25 season – 43games, 3,615 minutes
Denzel Dumphries – 29 years old – 24 / 25 season – 45 games, 3,197 minutes
Vitinha – 25 years old – 24 / 25 season – 53 games, 3,981 minutes
Youri Tielemans – 28 years old – 24 / 25 season – 53 games, 4,511 minutes
Alessandro Bastoni – 26 years old – 24 / 25 season – 53 games, 3,927 minutes
Joshua Kimmich – 30 years old – 24 / 25 season, 51 games, 4,467 minutes
All of the aforementioned, played a long club season, then showed up for their national team this summer, and then are playing in the Club World Cup…with the exception of one, Tielemans, who is not playing in the CWC.
Objectively, Pulisic does not have a leg to stand on.
P*ssy-lisic is a clown. I hope the next time he shows up in camp, he is benched. That would be merited for opening his pie hole and indirectly throwing Pochettino under the bus.
Gary,
Pochettino’s response saying, “players don’t need to understand the plan, they just need to follow the plan,” was in his PRESS CONFERENCE before the TnT game, and AFTER Pulisic spoke in public.
At that point, and because Pulisic spoke in public, Pochettino had no choice but to respond publicly and address the situation…and he dropped the hammer.
It’s interesting how Emma Hayes recently announced she is intentionally leaving off certain key players from games, stating that between club and USWNT commitments, the players do not get a break for at least a year. Yet this summer, a year before the WC and after a grueling club season, FIFA pencils in the Club World Cup. When do these players get time off from soccer?
Pulisic has already played 50 games this season. He gets a short break now, then reports for pre-season with little or no time off before reporting for the World Cup. Players like McKennie and Weah essentially get no recovery time before next summer. In my eyes, Pulisic’s absence may be a blessing in disguise.
we have a game today. the easy solution was, “basta. this roster is my decision, the buck stops here, everybody shut up and we’re gonna play some soccer games.”
this is gasoline on the fire. there is a difference between doing the friendlies and doing the summer and he is not letting pulisic off the hook. this is wandering towards some sort of personalities thing where reyna gets dropped and people ask off all the time. as it is the talk is he demands a lot of practice running. setting aside this ego stuff his approach requires high commitment and effort, training and games.
if he starts to lose that completely — and they looked lifeless first half midweek — this is toast and fire him immediately. if the coach has to rhetorically spout “i am the boss” that’s not a good sign. that’s like when your parents back in the day hit you with “because i am your dad/mom and i say so.” you only say that when your authority and decisions are being questioned or challenged.
personally i think half the problem — and i have been saying this since his first call sheet — is the lack of roster turnover from GB. NT coaches don’t normally just call the last coach’s list of guys because (a) those players got that coach fired and (b) you want to put your own stamp on the team. it thus appears to be in question now if it’s more his team or the regulars’.
“Reyna personality thing”
Bullshit.
SBI posters hate the diva shitbag kid and his little league parents. Gio was yesterday’s shiny new thing. The shine is off him now and they have moved on to new shiny objects like Diego Luna.
But those people don’t pick the players. I’ll repeat this because you clearly think otherwise but people on SBI don’t cap players.
You have to talk to Mauricio. Before it was
Gregg and now it is Pochettino.
If Gio isn’t playing for the USMNT it’s because Pochettino said so.
you couldn’t have been on a winner ever. winners tend to have to manage some bastards and loafers who perform on game day. i feel like we have a coach ego problem where they have to show who is boss.
you drop enough people or have them hurt and this is back to 2019 or 2017.
he was The Key Player in every single NL trophy win. there is a limited set of impact guys like that on this team. they all HAVE to be on the field if we want to do things.
get a clue.
we had a guy on our adult league team. fast, good forward. we’d been promoted twice with him. he finished that “3 pass 80 yard goal” i always mention. but he was a handful to deal with on the sideline. we changed which players were the “coach” who handle administrative stuff and the roster. they kicked him off. relegated that year.
but we all got along better with him gone.
sometimes it’s do you want wins and goals or do you want everyone to be pals and dutifully churn out practice work rate and be teacher’s pet — and lose more often.
if you make a change and the team gets worse — wake up. you got your way. and we haven’t been winning since reyna started getting shifted back aside.
and you’re missing my grander point. on the eve of the tournament he’s in the news squabbling with a core player.
the only possible positive spin is people are too busy foolishly taking sides in the flame war to remember they were upset with the roster and results for gold cup. so the online equivalent of the stands “boooing” the other day has gone away and been replaced by this nonsense.
which does shield the team from the heat. but so would have just telling the press to can it.
“and you’re missing my grander point. on the eve of the tournament he’s in the news squabbling with a core player.”
That’s not squabbling. He got asked a question and he answered. “I’m the boss.”
“the only possible positive spin is people are too busy foolishly taking sides in the flame war to remember they were upset with the roster and results for gold cup. ”
What results? There weren’t any when you wrote this.
IV
Typical. Your reply is just so much noise
Pochettino is the boss. He doesn’t have to prove that.
CP isn’t Landon. He isn’t foolish enough to think the USMNT can’t live without him. Unless he’s a lot stupider than we think he is, he and Pochettino will work it out. But if he is that stupid that will make 2 out of three WC’s that he will miss out on. Fuck him.
Contrary to your opinion, the USMNT is a lot more than CP, Gio, Turner and Cole Campbell.
playing this out in the public is amateur hour imo, what all the drama? it’s not so black and white to me either, like one side has 100% justice
first, to both of them, keep this inside, call it personal matters, whatever…dirty laundry in public sucks. when it gets into this pissing contest, no winners. fake alpha BS and they both look soft to me
second thing, if Poch is so on it because he’s using these opportunities to see all these others, why does CP need to be there? seriously, which is it? I would like him to be there but we need him and the team to be their best next summer, not today, and today we get to see what others can do without him…sounds good to me to look at others but him there sounds good to me too. again, why so much flipping drama?
finally, Adams should be the Captain, no questions asked. CP is not that guy, hasn’t been. Adams is a uniter, communicator and true leader.
Beachbum,
Landon baited Pulisic and Mark Pulisic took the bait. Then Pulisic tried to make himself look good by going on “Call It What You Want” and in doing so, he threw Pochettino under the bus. As a result, Pochettino had to respond, and note, his demeanor and tone in responding very directly and authoritatively.
Pulisic wanting to pick and choose what games he plays is the amateur hour part of all of this.
And the reason they, including Pulisic needed to be here THIS summer is so the TEAM could be at it’s best NEXT summer.
Pulisic is a clown.
Why would Landon bait Mark Pulisic?
hey Papi, look at how cool there set pieces look WITHOUT Pulisic taking them. that’s one example of what’s good about him being out
that it got to this point is also on Poch, come on man, it’s his relationship with Pulisic that broke down here, geez. He’s the coach!
and as I have said before, I think Pulisic tries to do way too much by himself and complains waaay too much during games, pouts, etc.
disagree on the baiting thing; so all these old timers are baiting Pulisic? no
not so black and white man, no way
Beachbum,
It is that black and white, so we are going to have to agree to disagree.
No way this is on Pochettino. It is 100% squarely on Pulisic.
Pochettino may be a newbie to international soccer, but he is not a newbie to soccer such that he doesn’t understand the importance of his relationships with his players…the fact that it is international and not club is not material in nature in this soap opera.
Pochettino has been protecting Pulisic going back to October 2024 when Pulisic was a little b*itch and didn’t want to go to Guadalajara with the UMSNT to play Mexico.
Pochettino said then, “we want to listen to the players when it comes to their bodies.” Pulisic was being a b*tch then and Poch was protecting Pulisic and NOT calling him out.
Same thing now…Poch said, “he asked for time off, we respect that.” Pulisic is being a b*tch and wanting to pick and choose what games he plays in ???
What Pochettino DID do is talk about his surprise in the USMNT culture of playing golf, grabbing dinner with family and friends, and being surprised by players not feeling the “heart and desire” to defend the jersey and crest. Reading between the lines, it was clear as day what he meant. He was sending a soft indirect message to the ENTIRE player pool, but he NEVER called out any one player, not even Pulisic.
If Pulisic said nothing else about not being in camp this summer, this issue would have faded into the background. Nope, instead Pulisic had to open his mouth and his “diarrhea of the mouth” ensued.
Pulisic is horrible at set pieces and that is nothing new. He should be in camp and Berhalter could have taken the set pieces yesterday and to use your words, “ook at how cool there set pieces look WITHOUT Pulisic taking them” could have been accomplished all the same. 🙂
Pulisic is a clown.
Papi, we disagree on the black and white part, not on Pulisic’s role in this. Now Poch is saying stuff like “I am the coach” in some pissing match right back with his player in the media, yuck…defend it, go ahead
Beachbum,
I know people think this is ONLY about Pulisic, but while this is about Pulisic, it is also MUCH BIGGER than that.
Pulisic has been acting like an entitled piece of shit for some time now and he needed to get chopped down.
For context, are you forgetting that last October he didn’t want to play vs Mexico in Guadalajara?
Are you forgetting that this past March, at the Nations League semi-final vs Canada, he waved of Pochettino because he wanted to stay in the game and take a free kick?
People are watching…Pochettino dropped the hammer ( read: I am the Coach ) to send a message to Pulisic, the rest of the USMNT player pool, and in a very self serving manner, to future prospective employers…did I mention people are watching?…and future employers want to know how he handles insubordinate “star players.” Pochettino responded, and made it clear…”I am the coach…and I am in charge.”
He had to…he had no choice…if he didn’t respond in that manner, he would have come off as soft and lacking control of the locker room…to ALL the people watching.
Quozzel,
Spot on.
It has to be said though, Pulisic is a piece of shit.
As a stand alone comment, what he said on the “Call It What You Want” Podcast is a pile of shit.
Factor in that he is a captain and leader on this team, and it is even bigger pile of shit.
Take into account that we are a year out from a World Cup on home soil, and it is about as big a pile of shit as possible.
I hope he never wears the captain’s armband again.
The next time Pulisic is called into camp, it would be great to see Pochettino flex again and bench him.
Frankly speaking, if Pulisic doesn’t fall in line, and fast, I am perfectly fine with Pochettino not including him in the final World Cup roster.
To me that’s a little strong. I’m a big Pulisic fan, I like his competitiveness, I like his confidence, I like his fire, and he’s for durn sure one of the most talented guys we’ve ever had.
I do think he’s been allowed to think he’s irreplaceable and doesn’t have to fight for his spot and that accommodations can and should be made for him, and there’s clearly some…attitude adjusting that needs to happen. I think he’ll get there. At the end of the day the guy wants it plenty bad enough, but any player will coast some if they’re allowed to…and he’s been allowed to.
The time to have that battle is definitely now. For a number of guys with much the same apparent attitude who seem to think the USMNT is a Euro league all-star team.
It ain’t.
Competitiveness?…he asked for time off so he could rest…that is not competitive by any measure.
He’s no longer going to be able to coast. Pochettino was loud and clear with his communication.
Puli-cakes will have to hop on board or get off the train. Pochettino is the conductor and in charge of the train that is moving towards World Cup 2026.
Gozo with another goal for RSL last night. Kid has talent and he can play across a front in a two striker system etc… and has pace like Tim Weah. Would not be surprised to see him get a call up in this next year of he continues to perform for RSL.
2tone: I’ve been impressed with Zavi’s growth from last summer’s U20 qualifiers. He’s improved his strength on the ball and his IQ with his runs. However, he’s still a one trick pony. Uses his speed to get behind the backline. Right now he’s Cade Cowell, Paul Arriola, or Jonathan Lewis. Jacob Shaffelburg would be a Canadian example. Teams in MLS will adjust to this and Gozo will have to expand his bag of tricks to make the NT. I really hope RSL continue to struggle so he’s available for the U20s though.
If you are going to bring in another player, let me mention Milan Iloski with San Diego FC. He has come out of nowhere. He is on loan from Denmark, although he is an American from the San Diego area. He was the leading scorer in USL before being picked up by a Danish first division team. He has been used as a 2nd half sub and so far he has 5 goals in 203 minutes, which is kind of insane. Last night he scored twice against Minnesota. The first one was a header when he outfought two defenders to get a header and beat the keeper. The second one came off a turnover at the top of the San Diego box and a 70 to 80 yard run, juking one defender and cutting back while still staying ahead of trailing defenders and then cutting across the goal to open up the goal mouth and scoring inside the far post. He has a real nose for goal and seems to almost always put his shots on goal.
Standing up to Pulisic was a good move from Poch. As a coach you CANNOT have an environment where everybody gets too comfy and you allow a hierarchy and varying sets of rules to apply…and all positions have to be open, all the time.
He’s telling his current roster of players that if they kill it for him, they get the spot, and he could care less where you play. What have you done for us? Pepi, for instance, is the prototype forward for what Poch likes to do, but he’s going to have his work cut out for him if Agyemang continues to produce. Agyemang has paid his dues on the field, Pepi hasn’t yet.
Those friendly defeats were embarrassing, but Pochettino also used them for exactly what friendlies should be used for: develop your pool, find out who your scrappers are. Find out who really wants it, and who doesn’t. We found out a great deal about a number of guys those last two games.
Gregg, in comparison, seemingly utterly ignored what players had proven during his suspension. The second he came back, the old pre-suspension pecking order was back in full force, the intervening games may not have even happened as far as he was concerned. And he duly wound up with a stagnant, soft, and frankly, entitled roster full of guys who felt they didn’t need to worry about their spots.
Everybody needs to worry about their spots with Poch. Camp Cupcake mattered to him. The Nations League mattered to him – and a whole lot of regulars did not exactly cover themselves in glory. And this Gold Cup absolutely matters to him. Players who weren’t here this time around may find themselves not called next time around if somebody else steps up in their absence.
Which is exactly how it should work. And it didn’t.
It takes a minute to shake out a poor culture. But while the results on the field have been…spotty, at best, I’ve liked a whole lot of the things I’ve seen Pochettino do and the first thing he’s done is tackle the weak culture we had developed head-on.
Good post, I see it the same way. THIS is how we can get back the fight in the USMNT. Besides, it gives the pundits something to talk about during the gold cup.
Agreed. Plenty of games this next year for Poch to solidify his roster. It’s time for all.players to get on board if not you aren’t going to the WC.
Quozzel,
Pepi hasn’t paid his dues,?
How is he supposed to do that with his knee in a brace? A return to previous form is never guaranteed with a knee issue. That’s Ricardo’s more pressing issue.
Standing up to CP?
Where do get that?
CP made a request and Pochettino denied him. End of story.
You’re making it sound like there was some big back and forth. Was there? And even if there was so what?
CP did not get his way. So where is the problem,?
If Pulisic and his peers don’t understand what’s wrong with his statement and why they are criticized, well, that just confirms everything that the critics are saying about this generation of players. No heart. No leadership. Don’t understand what the old guard means when they bemoan their perceived limited desire. Next.