The former U.S. international claims the U.S. has a pedigree in the competition, and needs to live up to it
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Lalas is a guest on on FOXClaims USMNT should expect to win Gold CupAdds Pochettino needs tournament win, but will be judged on World CupFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images EntertainmentWHAT HAPPENED?
Alexi Lalas says the USMNT should accept nothing less than winning the Gold Cup under Mauricio Pochettino, calling it the bare minimum for the program. Speaking on on FOX Sports, the former U.S. international star made clear that anything short of a title would be a disappointment.
"I'm still expecting them to win it. This is still the Gold Cup," Lalas said. "You can't have it both ways, OK? You can't tell me that the Gold Cup is a lesser tournament, and when it comes to competition. And, OK, relative to the World Cup, fine. But then, when we get to this Gold Cup, even with the talent that we have, as poorly as they played in the last two games, that you should't expect them to win it? "
The 1994 World Cup veteran with the USMNT said that even though the U.S. might not be viewed as title contenders heading into the competition due to a multitude of reasons, including a shorthanded roster without star forward Christian Pulisic, they still have enough talent to compete for the title.
"Are they the favorites? No, but I expect them to rise to the occasion. They hear everything that is being said right now, all right? And I hope they take it to heart, OK? And it's nothing, believe me, it's nothing compared to other teams around the world when they falter right now," Lalas explained. "So whether it's Mauricio Pochettino and some of the heat that he's coming in for, or whether it's this group of players that are there, or the group of players that aren't there, I hope you hear it. And I hope you react."
He added, "We shouldn't have to do that, but I hope that it does light a fire under their a*ses, and they bring it when it comes to the Gold Cup, and then, obviously for the next year. And then that magic happens next summer. But they got a long way to go."
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Pochettino, who has now managed 10 matches for the USMNT with a record of 5-5, has massive expectations on his shoulders for the competition. Lalas argued that the Gold Cup is a great stepping stone for the Argentine to show his value to the program and the fanbase, but that ultimately, the World Cup is what his time on the touchline will be judged upon.
"He has a pedigree when it comes to the club game, but not the international game. And they are very, very different in terms of the time that you are able to spend with your team. He is being paid, rumored to be $6 million a year, and so he has been hired to get us to a point that we haven't been before," Lalas said. "And look, this has been an abject failure, certainly over the last couple of games. Ultimately, he will be judged by the World Cup. The Gold Cup, like I said, it's said an opportunity now to make sure that we are headed in a better direction."
The Gold Cup roster consists of 15 MLS players and has a player pool of relatively new faces that are all fighting for roster spots on the 2026 World Cup team.
"I've talked about this fallacy that is the melting pot of a national team," Lalas said. "We have players from all over, not just the country, but all over the world, and it's very difficult to get 11 players on the field, all headed in the same direction in a country that thinks about the game and in a diverse way as we do. If I ask 100 American soccer people out there, what is the beautiful game? I'm gonna get 100 different answers. Now, that's not an excuse, but it is a reality. And so Pochettino's job is to make sure if he's got to dumb it down, fine. But whatever it is, either you're on board or you aren't."
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Lalas is hoping this group will show some of the grit that the team's critics have said it's missing under its current struggles.
"And I cannot tell you the amount of people that have come up to me and said, you know what? I will take a less talented U.S. men's national team at this point, as long as they show some of that traditional spirit and fight, and they make us proud by what they're doing," he said. "So we got to get ourselves in order on the field, and to a certain extent off the field, because this is coming down the pike, and it is coming fast, and it behooves us to make sure that this is a wonderful advertisement to the world and what we do on the field and what we do off the field."
DID YOU KNOW?
Pochettino is the first USMNT coach to lose five of his first 10 matches since Lothar Osiander from 1986-88.
Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT?
The U.S. begins their Gold Cup journey on Sunday against Trinidad and Tobago.
