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Jeff Carlisle
Washington DC — United States of America Men’s national team coach Mauricio Pochettino said his aim over the next six months was to continue improving the team and “show complete respect” towards it. World Cup group stage opponents,
Those rivals came into sharper focus on Friday, when the draw for next summer’s World Cup was made. America is also in Group D Australia, paraguaya and the winner of the playoff involving Kosovo, romania, slovakia And turkiye,
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Turkiye, ranked 25th in the latest round of FIFA rankings, are favorites to progress. And although the U.S. defeated Australia and Paraguay in recent friendlies, Pochettino said there is still a lot of work to do.
Pochettino stressed that nothing can be taken for granted as he sought to create a competitive environment where no one’s job is safe.
“I think in the next six months, we need to update everything,” Pochettino said in the postseason mixed area. “We know them, but they know us. Most important.” [thing] There is growth, and for us, as a team, keep improving in all areas. To ensure that our [play] I think we will be stronger than today.
“That’s the purpose for me, [be] Better and show full respect to Paraguay and Australia and the fourth [team] Which we will find out in March. Yes, I am looking forward. I am optimistic. Before the World Cup, after I think the World Cup, the most exciting moment for us is to be at our best.”
Asked if he was happy with the draw, Pochettino insisted it was not a matter of being happy or not being happy.
“Always when you walk in the door, you wait and see what’s going on, [see] What happens is, stay optimistic and trust our qualities and our players in our ability to really compete.”
The USMNT will likely have an advantage in many of the rematches due to the way the team has experimented with different systems over the past several months.
“We start to look at flexibility because I think, always, you need time, to carve out a role, to adapt to different systems and the way you want to play,” Pochettino said. “We tried from the beginning but it didn’t happen [quickly] Because this is a normal process.
“But I think yes, I think we’re very happy with the way we’re growing as a team, growing in areas, not only in aggression, but the way we compete [and] In strategic perspective. The thing now is that we are more aware of what we need to do, and I think we are improving. That’s the idea.”
The USMNT’s opening Group D game will be against Paraguay on June 12 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
“There are no easy games at the World Cup,” USMNT and bournemouth midfielder tyler adams Said on Friday.
“I think for us, no matter who we drew in the group, we had the confidence that we could make a run and do something special. Getting drawn in general, now the excitement increases, and it makes it feel more real.”
“We can go into the World Cup with a good feeling,” the USMNT captain said. Christian Pulisic Said a few hours after the draw. “We’ve been playing together for so long since youth football, and I mean being able to play the World Cup in your country, you can’t ask for anything better than that. This is what we dreamed of as kids, just to get this opportunity.”
