The United States men’s national team’s summer of experimentation has been extended all the way to the fall equinox, and on Saturday evening against South Korea, so too did the disappointing results. The 2-0 loss against the Taeguk Warriors on a steamy and damp evening at Sports Illustrated Stadium may have provided US head coach Mauricio Pochettino with valuable new insights about his additions to the US player pool, as he said was his goal for this international window. It may have confirmed pre-conceived theories about which players from an MLS-heavy roster can make the step up to the international level. It may have done none of those things. Whichever way, it certainly served as a continuation of a malaise for a team that desperately needs to break out of its slump just 279 days before hosting the first game of a home World Cup that is meant to be transformative.
There was no such malaise for South Korea, even with head coach Hong Myung-bo under heavy criticism at home for the team’s recent stale performances. The capacity crowd in Harrison, New Jersey certainly had something to do with that apparent rejuvenation, with the vast majority cheering for the visitors – a fact that may appear surprising until you consider the town is just down the way from Fort Lee, home to a growing South Korean diaspora. The nation’s traditional “Daehan minguk” chants broke out more than 20 minutes before kickoff, and continued throughout as wild cheers accompanied every thrust from Hong’s counterattacking side.
The US can reasonably expect more favorable crowds at a home World Cup, but they’ll hope to leave the form they showed on Saturday far behind. Pochettino’s side started decently, and had the better of play through much of the opening 15 minutes. But as it was in a similarly experimental game against Turkey earlier this year, initial flashes did not pan out into anything positive over the 90 minutes.
Asked afterward when it was time to start turning his ongoing evaluation of the US program into results, Pochettino said: “When the World Cup starts.”
Pochettino said there were numerous examples of teams that won plenty heading into World Cups that disappointed once there, using his experience as a player on the 2002 Argentina team taht exited the 2002 World Cup in the group stage as an example. Pochettino promised that the team would be ready and in top form come the World Cup opener, but it was hard to see on Saturday how a lackluster performance against the Korean would lead to that.
Key among the side’s failings was a lack of communication in defense. Tristan Blackmon, the 29-year-old debutant who was one of a couple surprise inclusions in Pochettino’s squad, was at the center of a few of them, but no US player was immune. Time and again, players as experienced as Tyler Adams, Tim Ream, and Sergiño Dest were scrambling to catch up with a Korea team that seemed one step ahead throughout.
As was suspected, Son Heung-min began the game in a relatively new role as the Taeguk Warriors’ starting striker. The newly signed LAFC man made it clear that he can be a difference maker in that position – scoring the game’s opening goal in the 18th minute in what was a crystal clear example of both US disjointedness and South Korean verve. With the US flat-footed and with huge gaps within and between the midfield and defensive lines, Son read the situation, parked himself in between Ream and Blackmon, got the ball, turned, and made no mistake with his finish.
“I thought we started the game in a very positive way, but we conceded in a way we should not concede,” Pochettino said. “We worked this week not to give a player like Son the possibility to run. We were so passive to provide the space to score.”
For the second goal, Son was played through on a simple give-and-go at the top of the box, and slipped past Ream and Blackmon to poke the ball away from the onrushing goalkeeper Matt Freese. Lee Dong-gyeong’s flicked finish was far from simple and well-executed, but the circumstances that led to it were hard to fathom from a team hoping to make noise on the world’s stage.
South Korea generated several more chances and near-misses on the back of US mistakes. Just six minutes after conceding, Christian Pulisic and Adams left large gaps in the Americans’ shape by sprinting to the same spot, where Korea cut off access to both with a well-coordinated high press that eventually forced Freese into one of several close-call clearances on the night.
South Korea did make mistakes of their own, but the US repeatedly failed to capitalize. In the 27th minute, a sloppy giveaway while playing out of the back put the combination of Diego Luna, Josh Sargent, Pulisic and Tim Weah in on goal. They couldn’t find a decent window on goal though, and Weah’s effort was saved.
“Overall, I think we we re better than South Korea, but in the end, if you are not clinical … it’s difficult,” Pochettino said afterward. “If we put the result to another side, I am so pleased with the way that we are evolving.”
Pochettino opted to make a rash of subs in the 61st minute, bringing on Alex Freeman for Dest, Chris Richards for Weah, Folarin Balogun for Sargent, and Cristian Roldan for Adams. Along with those introductions came a shift in formation, from a back four to a back, five with Freeman and Max Arfsten pushing forward on either touchline.
The US do not often play with a back five, and neither have most of Pochettino’s sides throughout his time as a manager. On this occasion, a few more scoring chances did follow the shift, though it’s difficult to say if the new arrangement or the US’s increasing desperation was to thank for the improvement.
It culminated in a couple of chances that were inches away from breakthroughs. In one, a set-piece fell to Richards, who looked like the central defender he is, as the ball ricocheted off his thigh and into the grateful arms of goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo. In another, Jo was the hero again, saving two consecutive point-blank efforts from Balogun before the striker had a third bite of the cherry, putting his final effort off the crossbar. Balogun was put through on goal again in the game’s dying moments, and Jo saved again.
Missed chances, big and small, continue to follow this team as their moment in the spotlight looms, increasingly ominously.
