Pochettino leaves the USMNT for Man United (explained like you're 5 years old)
Plus: the USMNT's two-game goodbye against Haiti, and a beer with Michael Carrick - the man Poch is replacing
Happy Friday, folks.
No Premier League this weekend, but it’s been a big week at the bar. On tap today:
🇺🇸 Pochettino just left the USMNT for Man United - all you need to know
⚽ The USMNT’s two-game goodbye to Poch against Haiti
🍻 A beer with Michael Carrick, the man he’s replacing
Let’s tap in.
🥃 TOP SHELF
Poch at his press conference today after realising Man United are 18th in the Premier League
Why Pochettino just left the USMNT for Man United
Back in August I called Man United the Dallas Cowboys. Big name, big money, not a lot of winning lately.
So picture this. The Cowboys are 1-9. They fire their coach on a Thursday. By Friday, they’ve hired the head coach of Team USA, who signed a shiny new contract three months ago.
That’s exactly what happened this week. Mauricio Pochettino is leaving the U.S. men’s national team to become Manchester United’s new head coach. United made it official this morning.
USMNT fans, I feel for you. I’ve had bartenders give me more notice. Not many, but some.
“Hang on, Joe. Didn’t he just sign a new contract?”
He did. When he signed a new deal in August to stay through the 2030 World Cup, it came with a $10 million release clause. That’s basically a price tag for leaving early. According to ESPN, it was Pochettino’s own camp that made sure United knew it existed.
Who is Pochettino again?
If you were in for our beer with him in October, you’ve met him. He’s a 54-year-old Argentine who coached Tottenham, PSG and Chelsea before taking the USMNT job in 2024.
He took the US to the Round of 16 at this summer’s World Cup, where they lost 4-1 to Belgium. Along the way, they topped their group and won their first World Cup knockout game since 2002. His three wins at the tournament are the most of any coach in USMNT history.
How it happened
Monday: Reports in England named Pochettino as United’s top choice to replace their coach, Michael Carrick.
Wednesday: United told U.S. Soccer they’d pay the $10 million, plus around $2 million more to bring his coaching staff along.
Thursday: United fired Carrick.
Friday: United made it official. Pochettino signs a two-and-a-half-year deal and starts on November 18.
Why would he leave?
Two reasons. First, the job itself. Coaching a national team is like coaching an All-Star team. You only get your players for a few weeks a year, during international breaks. A club coach gets them every day.
Pochettino has never hidden that he wanted to get back to coaching a European club, ideally in the Premier League.
Second, it’s United. They’ve looked at hiring him three times before and never closed the deal. This time they did. He’ll be their eighth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson, who won them 13 league titles, retired in 2013.
Why did United want him?
Because they’re in real trouble. One league win from 10 games. 18th out of 20. It’s their worst start to a league season in 40 years. That’s the relegation zone, and if you need a refresher on what that means, here’s our explainer.
He also knows the Premier League from his time at Southampton, Spurs and Chelsea.
What’s next for Man United?
Pochettino coaches the US against Haiti on Saturday and Tuesday, then flies to Manchester. He gets three days of training before his first game: Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday, November 22. That’s United’s biggest rival, away from home. No pressure.
Not everyone loves the timing (never mind the trans Atlantic flight and time difference). Some critics think a club this close to relegation should have him in the building already.
What’s next for the USMNT?
First, those two Haiti games (more below). After that, U-23 coach Steve Cherundolo takes charge of a December camp made up mostly of MLS players, while U.S. Soccer searches for a permanent replacement. USWNT coach Emma Hayes and former USMNT defender Oguchi Onyewu are part of the search team.
The names floating around include B.J. Callaghan, who’s coached the US as an interim before, Cherundolo himself, and the big swing: Pep Guardiola, who’s on a break after leaving Man City this summer.
The good news is the next competitive games aren’t until March. And the young core Pochettino built, led by 17-year-old Cavan Sullivan, isn’t going anywhere.
⏰ TLDR: Man United are 18th in the Premier League, so they fired Michael Carrick and paid $10 million to hire Mauricio Pochettino from the USMNT. It’s now official. He’ll coach the US against Haiti before he goes, then faces Liverpool in his first United game. The USMNT now needs a new coach, three months into a four-year plan.
🗣️ SOUND LIKE A REGULAR
“You’re getting sacked in the morning”
/jʊər ˈɡɛtɪŋ ˈsækt ɪn ðə ˈmɔːrnɪŋ/ 🔊
chant · soccer
Definition: A chant fans sing at a manager whose team is getting beaten, telling him his job is about to go. Usually aimed at the other team’s manager. Occasionally, and much more painfully, at their own.
Origin: A terrace chant sung to the tune of the Cuban folk song “Guantanamera,” a melody English crowds have borrowed for decades. It became a staple as clubs got quicker and quicker to fire their managers.
USED IN A SENTENCE
“United went two down at home again and the away end started up straight away: ‘You’re getting sacked in the morning.’ Took them until Thursday, but they weren’t far off.”
🗞️ THE WEEKLY TAP-IN…
Messi’s looking for a 3rd MVP award in 3 seasons
USMNT preview: Poch’s farewell tour
CONCACAF is soccer’s governing region for North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Its Nations League is a tournament for national teams, played during the international breaks.
The US won the first three editions and finished fourth last time. This quarterfinal is played over two games, and whoever scores more goals across both goes through. The winner goes to the finals at SoFi Stadium in LA next March.
Haiti v USA (Sat, 4:30pm ET): Haiti are technically the home team, but security concerns at home mean the game is at Nu Stadium, Inter Miami’s new ground. The US is 16th in the world rankings and Haiti 84th, and the US hasn’t lost to Haiti in 10 meetings dating back to 1976. Funnily enough, the last time the US played in Miami was 2004, against Haiti.
USA v Haiti (Tue, 7pm ET, Cincinnati): Pochettino’s last game in charge. It’s at the same stadium where the US beat Mexico 2-0 in 2021. Dos a cero, for those who were in for that lesson.
Who to watch: Christian Pulisic is back in the squad for the first time since breaking his leg against Belgium at the World Cup, and Folarin Balogun and Weston McKennie return too. Cavan Sullivan, 17, became the youngest goalscorer in USMNT history against Mexico in October.
Messi goes for three
Lionel Messi is a finalist for MLS MVP for the third straight year. He won it in 2024 and 2025, and nobody has ever won it three times.
One of the four players standing in his way? Cavan Sullivan, the youngest finalist in the award’s history. The winner is announced during the playoffs later this month.
🍻 HAVE A BEER WITH…
At least you’ll always have a great hairline, Michael.
Michael Carrick
Club and country: Manchester United and England (as a player). Until Thursday, Man United’s head coach.
This week: Fired by United, 10 months after taking over. He stepped in as interim coach in January, won 12 of the last 17 games to finish third, and got the job full-time in May. This season: one league win in 10. United’s statement still called him “a Manchester United legend.”
Fact: He’s done the United rescue job before. When the club fired Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2021, Carrick took charge for three games and went unbeaten, beating Villarreal and Arsenal and drawing with Chelsea. Then he quit straight after the Arsenal win, partly out of loyalty to Solskjaer.
Toast: A Newcastle Brown Ale. He grew up in Wallsend, just outside Newcastle. Smooth, unflashy, does the job. Just like his passing.
Instagram: @carras16
🔥 HOUSE SPECIALS
⚽ Goal of the week: Arda Güler’s curling free kick for Türkiye against Belgium. Not enough to stop a 2-1 defeat, but worth a watch.
🎉 Fanzone: Since Messi bought fifth-tier Spanish club UE Cornellà, its social following has gone from 35,000 to nearly a million. That’s more Instagram followers than Espanyol, the top-flight club right next door.
📅 On this day: November 13, 1875, Harvard and Yale played their first game under half-soccer, half-rugby rules. Yale soon ditched soccer for rugby, a big step toward American football.
🐶 Underdog corner: Chattanooga FC beat LAFC’s reserve team 1-0 to win the third-tier MLS NEXT Pro Cup with 28% possession and a 42-year-old goalkeeper. They’re the first independent club to win it.
👕 Wardrobe watch: Argentine club Independiente let its supporters design their own shirt, and Puma actually made it.
🔗 Most clicked from Monday: Our explainer on why soccer managers are always getting fired. Good timing, folks.
That’s all, folks. Sláinte.