Mauricio Pochettino and the U.S. Soccer Federation are working toward a deal for him to become the men’s national team coach, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
Pochettino, the former Tottenham, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain coach, has agreed to take over as the U.S. coach but the deal is not complete, the person said Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the agreement was not finalized.
Pochettino would succeed Gregg Berhalter less than 22 months before the Americans host the 2026 World Cup.
The USSF declined to comment.
A 52-year-old Argentine, Pochettino would become the first foreign-born coach to head the U.S. since Jurgen Klinsmann from 2011-16. He has coached Espanyol in Spain (2009-12), Southampton (2013-14), Tottenham (2014-19) and Chelsea (2023-24) in England and Paris Saint-Germain in France (2021-22), leaving after winning a Ligue 1 title.
Matt Crocker, the USSF’s sporting director in charge of the search, was Southampton’s academy director when Pochettino started at that club.
The U.S. has four friendlies upcoming, against Canada on Sept. 7, New Zealand three days later, Panama on Oct. 12 and an opponent to be determined on Oct. 15. The next competitive matches are a two-leg CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal in November.
Mikey Varas, a Berhalter assistant, could be in charge of the team for the September games and Pochettino could take over for the October matches.
Berhalter was fired on July 10, a week after the Americans were eliminated in the first round of the Copa America. He was hired in December 2018, was allowed to leave when his contract expired following a 3-1 loss to the Netherlands in the second round of the 2022 World Cup, then was rehired in June 2023 to return in September.
Pochettino would inherit a player pool led by Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, who have thrived with European clubs. But goalkeepers Matt Turner and Ethan Horvath and midfielder Gio Reyna have failed to gain playing time with first-tier teams, and Chris Richards — at Crystal Palace in England — is the only central defender in his 20s playing regularly with a top-league European club.
Berhalter minimized Major League Soccer players, not using any during the Copa America. Before heading the national team, Berhalter coached Columbus in MLS.
On-field discipline has been a problem, with defender Sergiño Dest getting two red cards in the past 13 months, and McKennie and winger Tim Weah receiving one each.
Pochettino was a central defender who played for Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina and Espanyol, PSG and Bordeaux in Europe from the late 1980s until 2006. He made 20 appearances for Argentina, playing at the 1999 Copa América and the 2002 World Cup, where his foul of Michael Owen led to David Beckham’s penalty kick in Argentina’s 1-0 group-stage loss.
After retiring as a player, he became a coach in Espanyol’s system, took over as first-team coach in January 2009 and helped the team avoid relegation. Pochettino was fired in November 2012 with the team in last place and was hired two months later by English club Southampton.
Pochettino moved in May 2014 to Tottenham, which reached the final of the 2015 League Cup, losing to Chelsea, and the 2019 Champions League, losing to Liverpool. He was fired in November 2019 with Spurs in 14th place and replaced by Jose Mourinho.
PSG hired Pochettino in January 2021. The team finished second in the league and lost to Manchester City in the Champions League semifinals but won the French Cup, beating Monaco 2-0 in the final. Led by Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, PSG clinched the 2022 Ligue 1 title with four games to spare but lost to Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16.
Pochettino left PSG at the end of the 2022-23 season, then was hired by Chelsea in June 2023 after the club finished 12th. Chelsea lost the League Cup final to Liverpool and finished sixth in the Premier League, missing out on the Champions League. Pochettino left two days after the final match.
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AP Sports Writer Ronald Blum contributed to this report.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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