It proved one recreation too far for Mauricio Pochettino’s United States as defeat to Mexico within the Gold Cup closing ended their hopes of lifting the trophy in their very own nation.

Pochettino’s begin to life as head coach has been unconvincing however a promising run on this summer season’s Gold Cup had began to offer new hope.

A win in opposition to Mexico in Sunday’s closing wouldn’t solely have delivered a trophy but additionally began the method of instilling some much-needed perception. It was to not be as Mexico got here from behind to win 2-1.

The defeat although will depart supporters questioning once more whether or not issues are shifting in the suitable path earlier than a World Cup on dwelling soil subsequent summer season.

Pochettino, who was livid after Guatemalan referee Mario Escobar Toca turned down a penalty attraction for handball, believed the vast majority of the 70,000 crowd on the NGR Stadium in Houston being Mexican went in opposition to his facet.

He mentioned: “Mexico is a good workforce, they’ve nice gamers and a superb teaching employees, however I wish to emphasize how vital the followers are in a soccer match.

“When you’ve got their assist, you regenerate the participant’s power on the sector, and when you do not, you drain their power and it is laborious.

“If we had the bulk supporting us immediately, it will have been totally different, however that is what we’re coping with. The reality was that if that occurred within the reverse field, for certain, it is [given as a] penalty.

“This Gold Cup although allowed us to have the gamers collectively for 40 days to determine the rules of what we wish, and that has been very useful. It was vital to see gamers crying after dropping; it makes me pleased as a result of that is how this sport ought to really feel.”

Blended outcomes throughout the Argentine’s first 16 matches have proven a worrying inconsistency and through this time, they’ve misplaced all 5 matches in opposition to a workforce within the high 30 of Fifa’s rankings.

By now, the US ought to have some readability of their preparations for the 2026 match, however there stays an unfinished, rocky really feel to the foundations they’ve been laying since Pochettino took over in September 2024.

Questions had been being requested of the previous Tottenham Hotspur and Paris St-Germain boss following consecutive defeats by Panama and Canada within the Nations League finals, and Turkey and Switzerland in Gold Cup warm-up video games.

There was an absence of consistency in each personnel and outcomes. The squad seems unresolved, with the group of gamers known as up differing for every camp, one thing that has principally been past Pochettino’s management.

Fifty-five gamers have made appearances for the USA beneath the Argentine since he was appointed 10 months in the past, making it troublesome to construct momentum and togetherness.