ST. LOUIS - Monday night's match in St. Louis seemed as if it was the first REAL Mauricio Pochettino game with the USMNT. It was the fourth of his U.S. men's national team tenure, in terms of math, but it felt like the initial moment in which his ideals truly shined through.
Facing off with Jamaica in the second leg of the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals, the USMNT's stars were ruthless, just as Pochettino wants them to be. Christian Pulisic scored a brace, and Ricardo Pepi and Tim Weah added goals, leading the U.S. to a comfortable 4-2 win that sealed a 5-2 aggregate triumph.
It was a match in which six USMNT players contributed a goal or an assist, and in which Pochettino's best players put Jamaica to the sword time and time again. It seemed as if every mistake was punished and every attack was dangerous, all match long.
It began early with a stunning 14th-minute Pulisic finish, one of the most difficult of his USMNT career. The second goal came 19 minutes later, as Lady Luck was on the U.S. side as Pulisic banked a shot off a defender and in. There was nothing lucky about Pepi's goal just before the half, though, as he picked a corner to make it 3-0, effectively ending the tie.
Pulisic, who became the fastest USMNT player to 50 goal contributions, said the confidence was high.
"It was an amazing performance," he said. "We came out really hot, obviously. It was nice to get the first goal, and early goal, and we built off that. I thought the first half was really strong ... We should definitely feel good after these results. We’re obviously learning a lot of new things. Obviously with a new coach, some things have changed and it connected well today, and hopefully we can just continue to improve."
Jamaica fought back, with Demarai Gray getting two goals of his own in between a fantastic Weah finish, a major moment in his return to the USMNT and first match since his red card the Copa America. After an absolute beatdown of a first half, the Reggae Boyz gave the USMNT a fight in the second, turning Monday's clash into a challenging game by the end.
And Weah, who waited so long for this return, felt the collective effort paid dividends.
"Just a lot of grit, playing together as a family. Giving 100 percent for each other. I think that’s we did today. And we can all be happy and look forward to something special," he said. "Playing in that final, the Nation’s League final, and then kind of building our way up to the World Cup at home. That’s the main goal. We’re on the right track. We just have to keep trusting each other, playing with intention, and do what we do best."
Pochettino will like the way this match played out. He'll like that the second half gave him talking points to dive in on and improvements to make. He'll love that first half, though, one that was a near-perfect display of how he wants this team to play.
It's still early, but Monday night's win was a step forward for the USMNT. They ended 2024 on a high note, effectively and efficiently kickstarting the Pochettino Era. GOAL rates the USMNT's players from CITYPARK.