IT'S POCH TIME FOR USMNT 🇺🇸

Hail GFOP!

I type with a sense of unprecedented zeal and anticipation. Happy Poch Day minus -1. America’s finest gents are poised to play a pair of games against Panama and Mexico, and Mauricio Pochettino is going to be on the sideline, wearing the United States crest over his heart. I am not going to lie. After the turbulent year, capped by Copa configuration, we have lived through, the prospect feels both magical and surreal. An elite footballing hero, crashing through a hole in time to arrive into the Star Wars Cantina that is CONCACAF, like Zlatan casually strolling onto a beach pick up game in Florida. 🇺🇸

We will break down the prospect in this newsletter, touch upon the news that Jurgen Klopp is returning to football in one of the Top Three most unexpected ways possible, write about heartbreaking hurricane devastation to the football community in Asheville, NC and tell you all you need to know about the footballing weekend ahead. 

ii. Crescendo of this week was speaking at Advertising Week about the future of football in the United States, and meeting so many GFOPs in the audience. I am not going to lie, I have spent the vast majority of this international break like a very small, petty person watching Anthony Gordon penalty miss on repeat. This version, shot from the Newcastle fans perspective is an epic movie in just over a minute. 🍻 

iii. I think the true highlight of my week was having my Chicago Bears fandom profiled by the quite excellent Kevin Fishbain, a reporter whose by-line I have long savored. Kevin delved into the unique agony known only to those who support both Everton and the Bears. I apparently said this: “There's definitely a shared sense of self-sabotage, of self-destruction. We are all collectively on a march of folly and I wouldn’t want it any other way.” I am just proud to have called our punter, Tory Taylor, “electric” in print. 🐻

iv. After years of having a dormant LinkedIn page in which I told the world I was a casino greeter in Biloxi, I have finally updated my profile. Follow us here. And our Men In Blazers profile is right here – you can see when we are hiring. Our goal is, as always, to do good things with great people. 🏆

vi. Arthur Okonkwo is one of my favorite figures in football. An Arsenal academy goalkeeping star who came through with Bukayo Saka, and enjoyed his loan spell at Wrexham so much he ended up signing there full-time. Here is my conversation with him. Up the Town. 

2. To the Football: USA! USA! USA! Vamos! 🇺🇸🇦🇷

USMNT vs. Panama Saturday, 9 p.m. ET, TNT 🇺🇸🇵🇦

Mexico vs. USMNT Tuesday, 10.30 p.m. ET, TNT 🇺🇸🇲🇽

📺 We will go LIVE on YouTube at the final whistle of both games

And so it begins. The first of just ten camps total between now and World Cup 2026. Mauricio Pochettino arrives mid-cycle and has to set a tone immediately. Audition the talent. Change the culture. Sharpen the tactics. And revolutionize the mindset into one of unshakeable determination. 

There will be little margin for error. And the world – or at the very least, the British press pack – will be watching. 

Like you, I have spent the week watching the training clips US Soccer have popped out on social media as Poch has broken out the medicine balls and, to quote Marsellus Wallace, gone medieval on his players asses. Antonee Robinson has talked about “the intensity” of Poch’s methods from the off. Tim Ream said, “We were out on the field for two hours which is probably the longest training session I’ve had with the USMNT in my 14 years,” which is somewhat astonishing. 

This is the Pochettino methodology. His press conferences this week have offered very little. Poch is charming, and warm, and most definitely excited by the challenge ahead, which he detailed in his interview with me. But around matchday, he is not a man of words. All that matters is the message he is delivering to his team. Again, Tim Ream was the gent who articulated that best in yesterday’s press conference when he said, “The message is he wants to win… He has his principles, he has his ideas, but at the end of the day, it’s about winning.” A US Men’s team, that no matter whom they are facing, believes it can find a way to win any which way. 

To find out all you need to know in this window – the revenge game against our Copa-slayers, Panama, then a descent into Guadalajara to face dread-rival Mexico: I taped a big preview with Herculez Gomez in which we went deep on Poch, Pulisic, the search for a striker, and the chaos at goalkeeper. Tell us what you think and what you are feeling in the comments. And join us immediately post-game in a Poch-tinged DO IT LIVE! at the final-whistle on Saturday night on YouTube (subscribe here, and turn notifications ON and you will be able to join us immediately). 

ii. This week, I filmed with Matt Crocker, US Soccer’s Technical Director, and the gent who oversaw the recruitment processes that landed first Emma Hayes, then Mauricio Pochettino as the coaches of our national team. I wanted to talk with Matt because he has been somewhat of a lightning rod during his tenure and to be candid – for a gent to go out and land those two coaches for our American teams at this time, is nothing short of historic. You can watch the conversation here 📺

To have Matt walk us through the dual processes was really fascinating. First and foremost, I asked him what had changed between his first search, which led to the re-appointment of Gregg Berhalter, and the second one which ended with Poch. The answer was multi-faceted, but one of the most fascinating aspects was the extent to which the hiring of Emma Hayes sent a signal to agents and managers around the world, and changed the way they thought about the American possibility. Also fascinating: Matt talking about the extent to which “the brotherhood” culture which Gregg fashioned, needs to be challenged and pushed. My words not his: A culture of complacency needs to be changed into one built upon accountability, responsibility, and a sharpened sense of ruthlessness. 

More: Mauricio Pochettino’s vision for the USMNT.

And, in related news: Gregg Berhalter will return to MLS at the Chicago Fire. A team who have only made the MLS playoffs twice since 2010 and currently hold the worst record in the Eastern Conference. I am genuinely sorry Gregg did not try and test himself abroad. For US coaching to improve, a pathway has to be found for American talent to take on assistant jobs at big teams, and then crack, first the Championship, and then the Premier League in England. Jesse Marsch cannot be one and done. 

👖 When will they release the Poch Jorts to go full soccer dad?

3. Jurgen Klopp is back in football in a new role that is… a choice

The Teutonic Care Bear is back. In January he will become Red Bull’s “head of global soccer” overseeing the multiclub organization which includes the New York Red Bulls. In America, the reaction has been very much, let the man get his bag. But in Europe, and in Germany in particular, where the Red Bull operation is loathed, and Klopp is both seen as true-Dortmund, the anti-RB, and a hero for speaking out against the Super League and commercialism in football, the reaction has been less than kind. Liverpool fans are bemused that he talked of needing a break from football, only to return after five months. Did we deify him too much? Did he speak out and grab the moral high ground? Two things can be true. At the end of the day, dude might just love drinking beers with his former assistant Pepijn Ljinders, who is currently RB Salzburg coach. Here is Jurgen’s explanation. 

More: Klopp shakes English football’s god delusion. 

4. Support Asheville’s Massive Youth Soccer Program recover from Hurricane Helene 🙏

We have been inundated with beautiful letters from football fans in that incredible town of Asheville, North Carolina. I talked about the remarkable football bar, Old London Road on this week’s podcast but wanted to write more about a message from Kate Hammes who runs the Asheville Buncombe Youth Soccer Association which, incredibly, has nearly 5,000 youth players registered in a town with total population of just 90,000, a symbol of the power of the game as a force of community. 

Kate wrote: “Our main soccer complex was destroyed by the storm. We lost our four turf fields, the road to the park is gone, the bridge into the park is gone, the second bridge you need to cross is gone and the road out of the park is gone. She added a GoFundMe which the organization has started to support the rebuilding process. It is a long road and we all know this: The kids who are in distress, will need their football more than ever. GFOPs help where you can.

Support Asheville rebuild its football life here. 🇺🇸💙

5. More Football, Did Ya Say?

i. Manchester City claiming “Victory” against the Premier League in a court case not directly connected to the 115 charges may not be the kind of victory they are purporting and…. Also has left the Premier League on verge of “Civil War.”

ii. Magnus Carlsen on his love of football and the Premier League chess talents of Mo Salah. 

iii. 777, the truly dodgy American Investor Group who seemed to have bought Everton last season have, surprise, surprise, gone bankrupt.

iv. Are Liverpool the real deal? What the data says about Slot’s dream start.

v. Great Piece on Spike Lee’s Arsenal fandom. I love this so much: Spike watching the Gooners at a Brooklyn bar. 

vi. Lovely piece on Wrexham and how the team has changed the economic fate of the entire town.

5. England v. Finland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇫🇮

How will England respond to yesterday’s last second 2-1 humiliating loss against Greece? We will find out on Sunday as Lee Carsley’s mob line up against little Finland (12 p.m. ET, ViX). Lose, and brace yourself for Hysteria unknown to mankind, even though it’s just the Nation’s League and means absolutely nothing. Liverpool’s Curtis Jones and Newcastle’s Tino Livramento have been called up to the senior squad for the first time, after the trio of Kobbie Mainoo, Morgan Gibbs-White and Ezri Konsa picked up injuries at the weekend. The last time the two sides met was mid-September at Wembley, when Harry Kane scored twice on his 100th cap to secure a 2-0 win. 

More: Should Harry Kane retire from England? 

6. The Women’s Game

i. NWSL

Three games left in the regular season. Three playoff spots remain. Last Sunday the record-breaking Orlando Pride clinched the NWSL Shield with victory over the Washington Spirit. This weekend the sixth-placed Chicago Red Stars could secure a playoff spot with a win over Gotham (Saturday, 4 p.m. ET, Paramount +), while Seattle, Angel City, San Diego, and Utah hope they don’t join Houston in being officially eliminated from postseason contention. 

🛍️ You can still gear up before the NWSL playoffs and support your squad (or favorite players) thanks to the GFOPs at WorldSoccerShop.

ii. WSL

A HUGE weekend in the Women’s Super League kicks off tomorrow with Arsenal hosting Chelsea just three days after their crushing 5-2 defeat to Bayern in the Champions League (8.45 a.m. ET, ESPN +/WSL Youtube). Five games follow on Sunday, with Man Utd taking on Spurs (7.30 a.m. ET, ESPN +/WSL Youtube), and league leaders Man City traveling to Liverpool (10 a.m. ET, ESPN +/WSL Youtube). 

Love to see (and stream) it: Women’s Super League viewing figures soar after streaming switch to YouTube.

I loved this: Sam Mewis talks to Arsenal and England’s star, Beth Mead.

More or Less, Presented by PrizePicks

Charlie Kipp Writes: With no Premier League football in England this week, we turn to the other football in England: the Chicago Bears playing the Jacksonville Jaguars in London this Sunday. That is the beauty of PrizePicks - variety. Pick multiple stats for one player, or mix up your sports entirely: however you choose to play, they have you covered. For instance, you could ride with me and take Roschon Johnson MORE than 0.5 Touchdowns.

The Chicago Bears offense has looked, dare I say… competent… in the past few weeks. Much of that credit rightfully goes to rookie QB Caleb Williams, but spare a thought for a revamped ground attack between D’Andre Swift and 23-year-old Roschon Johnson. The Texas Longhorn is built like Adama Traore, but with one key difference: he can finish! Three touchdowns in his last two games means he is the goalline weapon the Bears have needed for years, cue Refrigerator Perry highlights. He will get in the endzone again in London this Sunday, Roschon Johnson MORE than 0.5 Touchdowns. 

If you haven’t joined PrizePicks, CLICK HERE and deposit $5 and get $50 when you use code MiB.

7. Not Football, and All the Better for It

i. The million-dollar mystery of milk.com. I'm just surprised John Oliver hasn't got his hands on it yet. 

ii. The Miraculous Resurrection of Notre-Dame. Everyone who takes a selfie there should have to thank at least one of these people by name. 

iii. “Megalopolis” and “Joker: Folie à Deux”; or, The Virtue of Burning Money. In less than 24 hours I will be Megalopolis-pilled. Will report back with the context for this clip.

iv. The Greatest Knicks Team That Never Was. "Nova Knicks" merch economy in freefall. 

v. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of "Dookie," Green Day has "demastered" it, recording each track on an increasingly obsolete format. Click here if you want to hear Teddy Ruxpin sing "Chump." 

vi. Lessons from “Richie Rich”: How Everyone Got Lost in Netflix’s Endless Library.

vii. An Intoxicating 500-Year-Old Mystery I NEED Nicolas Cage to be involved in the eventual film adaptation of this.

viii. What is the Worst song ever? Shoutout to the person who decided "it's a song by Billy Joel, but which one." 

ix. Danish family seek to return Etruscan objects bought from boot of car in Italy. Features a truly INSANE zoom on the son's photo. 

x. Is My Blue Your Blue? Turquoise IS blue and I will argue with anyone who says otherwise.

xi. Industry Season 3 is all about the sad state of masculinity. (God Bless Robert. Sweetpea needs her own spin off) (Spoilers!).

xii. I love this song: Loveless Country by Nathan Jacques. 

That’s it for today. Let me leave you with a photograph and a story that made me so happy. The man who caught the world’s biggest goldfish nicknamed “the carrot.” I love this story, just for the photograph. Thank the lord, he threw it back. But I love this so much. The size of the fish. The Erling Haaland of goldfish. And the fact that the experience – the encounter really – was so fleeting yet so powerful in his life. Let us all hope we catch our version of the world’s biggest goldfish, and similarly savor it. 

To more, 

Big Love,

Let’s make great memories together watching football and not take a second of it for granted.

Courage.

ROG