(Reuters) – The United States were beaten by Canada 2-1 in the Concacaf Nations League third place match on Sunday but they have enough time to figure things out ahead of next year’s World Cup on home soil, manager Mauricio Pochettino said.
It was United States’ second consecutive defeat after being stunned by Panama 1-0 in the Concacaf Nations League semis on Thursday.
Pochettino, who left Premier League club Chelsea in May after one season in charge, has a big job on his hands, having been tasked with leading the United States at the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Canada and Mexico.
“It’s better (to lose) now because I think we have time. Because if we will be in this situation in one year time, for sure. I will tell you, ‘Houston, we have a problem. SOS,” Pochettino told reporters.
“Don’t be pessimistic, and don’t get bad feelings. We are all (disappointed) and the fans need to feel the disappointment that we didn’t win. But I’m not going to allow (us) to feel pessimistic because I think we have good players.
“We are going to find a way to perform and for sure we are going to compete in a different way.”
The United States will next be in action when they host Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches in June.
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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