US Men tie Ecuador 1-1, Face Australia tonight 8:30 pm on TNT

The US Men put perhaps their best performance together under Pochitino against a solid Ecuador team in a 1-1 tie Friday night (highlights). Ecuador who stands 2nd to Argentina in South American WC qualifying has now gone 14 straight without a loss and has given up just 5 goals in the last 10 games. The US had plenty of chances to end that streak however as a free flowing attack had our Center forward Balogun with multiple chances on goal before equalizing in the 78th minute. Serie A player of the month Christian Pulisic didn’t come on until the last 20 minutes and looked lively in the attack as well. The US used their 3 back alignment with Richards in the center and Tim Ream on the left and Miles Robinson on the right to start. Richards was twisted badly on the Ecuador goal showing more work needs to be done in the back. I thought McKennie returned to form and Tanner Tessman showed he could play the 8 role if needed as he provided the assist to Balogun. All in all the 1-1 draw in a game that felt like it should have been 2-1 US – is a good result for this US team. However – and this is HUGE. Remember this was Ecuador’s B team – much like Japan – they sat a bunch of starters for this game. Not sure why we keep getting teams B team – but we do. We’ll see if Australia plays their A team coming off a 2-0 spanking of Canada in Montreal? But don’t get too excited on ole Poch just yet — we still haven’t beaten anyone decent’s A TEAM. When we do — I will give credit. Until then – this tie get a B-.

For Tonight – I am hoping Pulisic starts and we come on strong to start. I would like to see CCV start in the middle with Richards in his more natural right side and McKensie on the left if we go back 3 tonight. I also want Matt Turner in the net. If Balogun starts up front but gives way at half time — I see a goal early and a 2-1 win over the Aussies. I sure do hope they start their A team. Though I don’t think they will.

Goalkeepers (4): Chris Brady (Chicago Fire), Matt Freese (New York City FC), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew), Matt Turner (New England Revolution).
Defenders (8): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic), Alex Freeman (Orlando City), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati).
Midfielders (8): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders), James Sands (St. Pauli), Tanner Tessmann (Olympique Lyonnais), Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen).
Forwards (6): Patrick Agyemang (Derby County), Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Tim Weah (Olympique Marseille), Haji Wright (Coventry City), Alex Zendejas (Club América).

Sad to see our U20 US Boys lose out to Morocco on Sunday afternoon (highlights)– watched the game in Spanish – so not 100% sure what was happening – but we had our chances to put some shots on goal — we just couldn’t score. Morocco on the other hand capitalized on their chances and took home the victory 3-1. But it was a 2-1 tight game for most of the match. U20 Semis continue with Morocco vs France (yes the France we destroyed 3-0) & Argentina vs Colombia Wed night on FS2.

High School Regionals Avon visits Carmel Girls 6:30 pm Thurs, Carmel Boys host Lawrence North Wed 6 pm

The #2 ranked Carmel High Girls will host former legendary Carmel coach Frank Dixon and Avon this Thursday night in Regional Semifinal action at 8 pm at Murray Stadium. Sectionals wrapped with Carmel beating Westfield 1-1 in PKs in Zionsville Sat night. https://www.ihsaa.org/sports/girls/soccer/2025-26-tournament?round=sectionals
On the boys side #9 Carmel beat Zionsville 2-0 Story  and will host Lawrence North on Wednesday night at 6 pm at Murray Stadium in Regional Semi-Final action. https://www.ihsaa.org/sports/boys/soccer/2025-26-tournament?round=sectionals

Indy 11 host Home Finale vs Loudon United 7 pm at the Mike

Indy Eleven’s late rally came up short in a 2-1 loss to Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC at Highmark Stadium Saturday night. Defender James Musa found the back of the net in the 88th minute, but the Boys in Blue were unable to complete the comeback in the final moments vs former Carmel High & Butler GK Eric Dick. The Boys in Blue have their final regular season home game with Fan Appreciation Night on Saturday, October 18 at 7 p.m. at Carroll Stadium vs. Loudoun United FC.

A Reminder Carmel FC is Looking for High School Players to fill out some teams – including my 2010 Boys Team. Come on out Thurs Oct 16 for Supplemental Tryouts.

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FULL TV GAME SCHEDULE

Tues, Oct 14
12 noon Prime Norway vs New Zealand
2:45pm FS2 Latvia vs England WCQ
2:45pm Prime Spain vs Bulgaria WCQ
2:45pm Prime Portugal vs Hungary WCQ
8 pm ?? Canada vs Colombia
9 pm TNT, Max USA Men vs Australia
10:30 pm Prime Mexico vs Ecuador
Weds, Oct 15
12:45 pm Para+ Lyon (US Captvs St Polten
3 pm ESPN+ Chelsea (Girma) vs Paris Womens UCL
4 pm FS2 Morocco vs France U20 WC Semis
6:15 pm ESPN+ Washington Spirit vs Monterrey Women Champs Cup
7 pm FS2 Argentina vs Colombia U20 WC Semis
8:15 pm ESPN+, Para+ Orlando Pride vs Pachuca WCC
Fri, Oct 17
2:30 pm ESPN+ Union Berlin vs MGladbach (Reyna, Scally)
10 pm Prime Bay FC vs NC Courage NWSL
10 pm Prime Seattle Reign vs Utah Royals NWSL
Sat, Oct 18
7:30 am Nottingham Forest vs Chelsea
9:30 am Mainz vs Bayer Leverkusen (Tilman)
10:15 am ESPN+ Barcelona vs Girona
10 am Peacock Crystal Palace (Richards) vs Bournmouth (Adams)
10 am USA Brighton vs New Castle
12:30 pm NBC Fulham vs Arsenal
12:30 pm ESPN+ Bayern Munich vs Dortmund
12:30 pm CBS Washington Spirit vs Orlando Pride NWSL
2:45 pm Para+ Roma vs Inter Milan
3 pm Peacock FIFA U20 WC 3rd Place Game
6 pm MLS Decision Day – games on Apple TV FREE
7 pm TV 23 Indy 11 vs Loundon
7:30 pm Ion, Prime Houston Dash vs KC Current (NWSL)
9 pm MLS Decision Day – games on Apple TV FREE
Sun, Oct 19
6:30 am Como vs Juventus (McKennie)
9 am USA Tottenham vs Aston Villa
11:30 am USA Liverpool vs Man United
2:45 pm Para+ AC Milan (Pulisic) vs Fiorentina
3 pm FS2 FIFA U20 World Cup Final
3 pm ESPN+ Getafe vs Real Madrid
5 pm ESPN Angel City vs Portland Thorns (NWSL)
Tues/Wed Oct 21-22 Champions League

Thurs, Oct 23
9 pm TNT, Max USA Women vs Portugal Chester PA
Sun, Oct 26
4 pm TNT, Max USA Women vs Portugal Hartford CT
Sat, Nov 15
5 pm TNT, Max USA Men vs Paraguay Chester PA
Tues, Nov 18
7 pm TNT, Max USA Men vs Uruguay Tampa, FL

US Men

U.S. hopes Pulisic ‘can be available’; Robinson out
USMNT’s second half vs. Ecuador gives positives for Pochettino
Healthy and in form, Balogun takes hold of USMNT striker job
Poch: ‘Brave’ U.S. upped tempo in Ecuador draw
Mauricio Pochettino’s World Cup vision is coming into focus as USMNT starts to click
Balogun’s clinical finishing earns USMNT a draw in 9/10 showing
Balogun’s second half goal helps USMNT salvage draw against Ecuador
Watch: Who was Mauricio Pochettino’s cryptic Instagram story meant for?
Should USMNT fans have more confidence in Mauricio Pochettino?
2025 USMNT Friendly: Scouting Australia
Socceroos spoil Canada’s party as World Cup momentum grows

U 20 US Men Bow Out of World Cup

Post Mortem: U.S. U-20 falls to Morocco in another QF exit. A look at the cycle

World Cup Qualifiers

Portugal rescue late win; Italy and Spain cruise in World Cup qualifiers
World Cup 2026 qualifying: Greece out, Faroe Islands make history
Cape Verde qualify for first ever World Cup with 3-0 win over Eswatini
NI down but not out after ‘sore’ Germany defeat – young squad not out, as Michael 
Sweden set to miss out on the World Cup, it’s almost official 
Sweden suffer shock defeat against Kosovo to leave World Cup hopes almost over

LAFC v Real Salt Lake – 9p on FS1: Diego Luna

Proud Member of American Outlaws  http://www.facebook.com/IndyAOUnite 

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Yanks Abroad

Malik Tillman faced off against fellow countrymen, Gio Reyna and Joe Scally, on Sunday as Leverkusen tied Monchengladbach 1-1. Tillman scored the goal, making that 2 goals in his first 3 Bundesliga matches. Good to see the trio linking up after their game as well.

Tanner Tessman scored a game-winner for Lyon in their 1-0 win over Angers on Friday.

USMNT star Christian Pulisic expected to play vs. Australia in key friendly

Christian Pulisic during a training session with the USMNT. Omar Vega / Getty Images

By Paul Tenorio and Henry Bushnell

Oct. 13, 2025Updated 9:49 pm EDTCOMMERCE CITY, Colorado — U.S. star Christian Pulisic trained Monday with the national team and is available for selection for Tuesday’s friendly against Australia.Coach Mauricio Pochettino told the English-language TNT broadcast last week that Pulisic had some swelling in his ankle after training. Pulisic did not start in the 1-1 draw with Ecuador on Friday night in Austin, but subbed into the game in the 73rd minute for Tim Weah. The AC Milan attacker, who has six goals and two assists across all competitions for Milan this season, did not look limited in his outing against Ecuador.Pulisic, who was named the Serie A Player of the Month in September, was on the training field for the public portion Monday and, barring a setback, should be available for the Americans on Tuesday.“Christian participated in the training session, the reaction after 20 minutes of playing (on Friday) was good,” Pochettino said at Monday’s pregame news conference. “He reacted very well (and the) hope (is) that tomorrow he can be available. We have to wait today (to see) the reaction, too, but much better than when he arrived.”Stay in the know by selecting your interests on The Athletic:hile Pulisic could play a role against Australia, Pochettino ruled out left back Antonee Robinson. The Fulham defender was not at training during the public portion open to reporters. Robinson did not play against Ecuador because of the knee injury that forced him to have surgery this offseason.Robinson has played a limited role for Fulham early this season and said last week that coming into the camp, “there hasn’t really been a specific conversation about how many minutes I’m going to play this trip, if any.” Right now, it looks like it will be the latter, with Robinson getting a chance to be back around the group and the coaching staff, but not yet at the level to contribute on the field.

Antonee Robinson will not take part in Tuesday’s game, according to coach Mauricio PochettinoJohn Dorton / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images

“Antonee from (the) beginning of camp (had) some small issues in his knee, a little bit of pain,” Pochettino said. “We are managing him in the best way, but (he) still cannot be involved in training and for sure cannot be involved in the game. Hope that it’s not an important thing, but he’ll go back to his club in a normal way there (and hopefully will be) training and competing.”

Winger Alejandro Zendejas left camp and returned to Club America after the Ecuador game due to a knee injury.

Pochettino: ‘For sure, there are going to be changes’

The USMNT’s Monday training session took place in blustery, 50-degree conditions just outside Denver. Staffers wore puffy coats. Multiple players, including Pulisic and Weston McKennie, wore winter hats at the start of training.

“We need to pay attention that we change from Austin to Denver. The conditions are completely different,” Pochettino said shortly after training. “You saw, we suffered.”

“And also, some players are tired,” Pochettino continued. “Some players have some — I think [we need] not to take a risk.”

Considering those factors, Pochettino said that he’d make lineup changes for the game against Australia.

“It’s a good opportunity also to keep improving and showing, maybe, different approaches to the game,” he said. “For sure, there are going to be changes, and maybe change the shape.”

SMNT, Mauricio Pochettino have a (good) Weston McKennie dilemma

Weston McKennie can play a number of roles for USMNT John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF

By Henry Bushnell Oct. 12, 2025

AUSTIN, Texas — Over nine years of professional soccer, Weston McKennie has played just about everywhere. He is, at heart, a midfielder; but he has been a right back and left back, a wingback and winger, a player who, in the words of former Juventus coach Thiago Motta, “can do everything.” Even in his natural habitat, the middle of the park, he has been a No 6, 8, 10, and every fractional number in between.His preferred role, though, revolves around a single word: “Freedom.”“I’m the type of player that likes to get forward, and have the freedom to move around, and the trust and belief from the coach to be able to do that, to make runs in behind,” McKennie said Friday after he and the U.S. men’s national team drew with Ecuador. “I like to be in the box. But I also like to defend and press.”He liked the role USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino gave him Friday. McKennie, back with the national team for the first time since March, started as a central attacking midfielder, a position sometimes reserved for a clever playmaker. But he and Pochettino put their own spin on it.Without the ball, he helped lead the U.S. press, in a 4-4-2 defensive shape.

With the ball, he started in the right pocket, between Ecuador’s lines, with Malik Tillman in a similar position to the left, as the central two of the “4” in a 3-2-4-1 (sometimes described as a 3-2-5).

From that starting spot, though, McKennie ran or floated into just about every zone in the attacking half. He read the game well, and sometimes stayed in the pocket, either to give the U.S. structure in possession or to link an attack. On other occasions, he broke into a sprint, either diagonally across the field or more vertically, stretching the Ecuador defense.

In the 37th minute, for example, he drifted toward the ball, then saw Ecuadorian right back Alan Franco getting too attached to Malik Tillman, and darted into the space Franco had vacated.

In his preferred free role, this is one of McKennie’s greatest strengths. He has both the speed to make these runs and the smarts to know when and where they’re appropriate.He has, in Pochettino’s words, “the capacity, from a higher position, to interpret and to read the demands of the game”.He’s also unpredictable. He can stretch an opponent spatially but also mentally, and discombobulate a defense. He does this in a proactive and relentless way that other U.S. attacking midfielders, such as Tillman, don’t.Pochettino’s problem is that McKennie is not a traditional attacking midfielder. When he gets on the ball in these dangerous areas, he’s not a creative technician like Tillman and Christian Pulisic (and Gio Reyna).And to get both Tillman and Pulisic on the field along with Tim Weah, Pochettino would probably have to either take McKennie off or rein him in.Pulisic, of course, will be on the field when healthy. Weah (or another right wingback) will probably be too. And Tillman has gradually risen into similar territory, in part because he does things on the ball that McKennie does far less often.When McKennie gets the ball in tight spaces at the edge of the penalty box, he’s sometimes indecisive; he’s OK, but doesn’t turn and unlock a defense frequently enough.

That’s why he’s better as more of a “free 8”, starting from a slightly deeper position and running into dangerous areas, rather than receiving the ball in dangerous areas on the half-turn. This is what he was for the U.S. at the 2022 World Cup, when he bossed England with his running and ball-carrying. Four days later, against Iran, he picked up his head 40 yards from goal, and clipped a lofted diagonal pass to Sergiño Dest, who nodded it to Pulisic for the game’s lone goal.

In other words, he also has “the capacity to help in the buildup, dropping, but also arriving and scoring goals,” Pochettino said Friday.He used to do all of that for the U.S. in a 4-3-3 — and he could do it because he had two other athletic midfielders, Yunus Musah and Tyler Adams, supporting him. The main deficiency of the “MMA” midfield, though, was its lack of a playmaking No. 10 — its lack of a Malik Tillman.And so, the dilemma: If McKennie is high, in place of Tillman, next to Pulisic, is there enough creativity? Enough service for Folarin Balogun? A player who can combine with Balogun like Tillman did in the 8th minute on Friday and later on?On the other hand, if Tillman is in and McKennie is deeper, presumably next to Adams, does McKennie have the necessary freedom?“What I want to provide him is the freedom,” Pochettino said Friday. “He’s a player that needs freedom.”If he and Tillman and Pulisic have it though, Adams would be vulnerable or limited — and the USMNT’s balance, between attacking freedom and defensive rigidity, would be off.Adams can cover a ton of ground from his defensive midfield position, but he can’t be everywhere. He’d also have to restrain himself and suppress one of his elite skills, his ability to charge at opposing midfielders and win the ball high up the field — the type of thing he does regularly at Bournemouth because he plays within a structure, with another defensive midfielder next to him.The other alternative, of course, would be not to start McKennie. But McKennie is one of the USMNT’s three most accomplished players. He has experience on big stages and a track record of rising to big occasions. He is valuable in both penalty areas on set pieces. He has slimmed down and seemingly won back his place at Juventus. Surely, he is part of the national team’s best 11.So, there is no simple answer.There are multiple good answers, but no easy one.“It makes it hard for the coach to make a decision about who’s going to play in that role,” McKennie said of Pochettino’s many options in the advanced position.“Also, you can look at it as an advantage, because depending on what team you play, you have different players with attributes that can add something different to the game. And even if you start with some players, and other players come into the game, it adds something different. So, I think it’s a good problem to have.”

Mauricio Pochettino preached calm amid USMNT negativity. His team just proved him right

Mauricio Pochettino during the USMNT’s 1-1 draw with Ecuador (Daniel Jefferson / USSF / Getty Images)

By Henry Bushnell Oct. 11, 2025

AUSTIN, Texas — There were no beaming smiles, nor sunken shoulders, just an air of professionalism and calm.One by one, U.S. men’s national team players strode through a tunnel to a loading dock here at Q2 Stadium on Friday night, and within them, but also around them, there was neither jubilation nor unrest.They had just played perhaps their best game of the Mauricio Pochettino era, in a 1-1 draw with Ecuador, but as they walked across a glistening green pitch, then stepped up into their team bus, their demeanor wasn’t all that different from it was a month ago after a 2-0 loss to South Korea.When a few spoke to reporters, they were even-keeled, analytical and, in many ways, exactly what Pochettino wanted.A month ago, they were at the center of a storm. They were a disjointed mess in their first of two September matches. They were surrounded by negativity as they kicked off their World Cup year, as they decompressed on a late-night flight from New Jersey to Columbus. They were, by one metric, the worst USMNT of the 21st century.But a couple days later, when Pochettino stepped to a podium and sat before a microphone, he preached positivity. He struck a defiant tone, poked at “bulls***” criticism, and insisted: “We have a plan. We know what we are doing. … We have no worries about anything.”More important, though, were his private words to his players.“The coach told us to keep calm,” striker Folarin Balogun told The Athletic on Friday, recalling the message last month.

Folarin Balogun cut a composed figure in attack for the U.S.Aric Becker / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images

“He has a strong identity in the way he wants us to go about things,” Balogun said of Pochettino. “When you’re a top European coach, you’re not gonna panic from losing one game. His calmness definitely comes into the team.”nd a month later, the team proved him right.They didn’t prove that they’re a team to be feared. They didn’t prove that, suddenly, all is well. They still have shortcomings. They are still reconstructing themselves. Months ago, “we started to destroy the things that we need to destroy,” Pochettino said Thursday, “and started to build the house from the ground up.” Now and for the foreseeable future, they are still building.But that, precisely, was Pochettino’s point all along.When they flopped against Switzerland in June, the house hardly had a foundation. When they struggled during the Concacaf Gold Cup or when they lost to Korea, they were still in a relatively early phase of the rebuild.What matters, he essentially said last month and Tuesday, is the finished product next June. “The most important thing is to arrive (at the World Cup) in a very good condition and win the first game, the second game,” and so on, he said.These friendlies against Korea, Japan, Ecuador, Australia? Yes, he wanted to win, but: “It’s important to use these games like a training session.”So he resisted, and perhaps even ridiculed the negativity. “Sometimes people want to talk only to analyze the result, and want to be negative. And I think it’s a little bit of a shame. We need to be positive,” Pochettino said last month.He was positive, relentlessly positive, to counterbalance the criticism that he knew would come from elsewhere. And now, after a 2-0 win over Japan and a 1-1 draw with Ecuador, he is being vindicated.But not because his team is brilliant. No, the best part about those two games is that no one involved feels vindicated. In news conferences and mixed zones, there were no “I told you so”s, only realism.

Friday’s performance, by many objective measures, was a very good one, but to defender Chris Richards, it was a “solid performance. … There were positives and negatives.”“It was a pretty good match,” midfielder Tanner Tessmann said.When defender Tim Ream was asked whether Friday’s game showed that Pochettino’s ideas were taking hold, he said, “um, yeah, I think so,” but not adamantly.“Listen, it was always going to take a little bit of time for their ideas to really take hold with the entire group,” Ream said. But he agreed it was happening. “You saw the energy that we played with,” he continued. “That’s something that has been — something that they’ve really preached. And now I think everybody really is starting to understand and grasp that mantra of playing with intensity and being aggressive with and without the ball.

Tim Ream believes the U.S. has progressed under Pochettino.John Dorton / ISI Photos / USSF / Getty Images

“Guys have been trying to play with that energy, but I think it’s also marrying the tactical ideas and the strategy with playing with energy and the aggressiveness. And there’s a balance to it. There’s a line you have to get up to, and you have to touch, without crossing, while also understanding the different tactical nuances that (the coaches) want, with building in a three(-man base), or sometimes a midfielder drops out — it’s just all these different ideas that they have.“And it takes time to understand them if you’re not used to doing those types of things. But I think now we’re seeing that those two things are starting to come together.”Starting to. They have not yet fully come together. Just as Ream insisted after the South Korea loss that the USMNT was making progress, he spoke in similar terms and tense Friday. He just didn’t have to craft a compelling argument around that opinion, because the progress was clear for all to see. The performance spoke for itself.And so, with 180 reasonably strong minutes, the Americans have weathered the negativity. Sure, there is still some apathy, and the general boredom of a World Cup cycle without qualifiers, but there were also “U-S-A” chants and positive vibes Friday night. The so-called noise has petered out.Tessmann summed up the turnaround. His last USMNT camp had been in March. When asked about the freakout that stemmed from Concacaf Nations League losses that month to Panama and Canada, though, he assured us: “To be honest, I don’t hear any of the noise.”“Y’all talk amongst yourselves,” he added. “And y’all do y’all’s job. And I do my job. So, nothing changes for me. I don’t know what the noise was at any of the camps. All I heard was the noise tonight when we scored.”

USMNT effectively embraces its new tactical identity under Pochettino

Malik Tillman goes on the attack for USMNT vs Ecuador Omar Vega / Getty Images

By Paul Tenorio Oct. 11, 2025

AUSTIN, Texas — For the first 23 minutes of Friday’s 1-1 draw with Ecuador, the U.S. pushed forward and created one chance after another. In the sixth minute, Folarin Balogun took off on a fantastic individual run after winning the ball back near midfield and earned a corner. Two minutes later, Balogun and Malik Tillman played a combination that sprung Balogun in behind for another chance. Four minutes after that, Balogun and Tillman again combined to put Ecuador under pressure and earn another corner. In the 17th minute, Tim Weah’s movement up the right side and attempted link-up with Tanner Tessmann earned another corner, and in the 21st minute Balogun’s curling shot dipped just over the bar.It felt almost unfair that Enner Valencia’s brilliant run, touch and finish gave Ecuador a 1-0 lead in the 23rd minute. The U.S. was looking strong and confident. It was creating chances. It felt like a team with real chemistry and ideas. Almost exactly one year since Mauricio Pochettino managed his first U.S. match, things have felt mostly disjointed and unstable — both on the field and off. Some of that has been purposeful. Pochettino wanted a healthy level of uncertainty. It was needed to create competition. But the on-field chemistry, or lack thereof, has been a real concern. It’s why there is a level of relief that, for the second straight match against a quality opponent, the U.S. looked like a team that is embracing a tactical identity — one that is built around flexibility and freedom but also leans into the team’s attacking strengths. Balogun’s 73rd-minute goal was a deserved finish that gave the U.S. a well-earned positive result. Truthfully, the U.S. probably deserved more from the game. But beyond the draw, it was the team’s continued evolution in a fluid setup, one built around wingers/wingbacks and dual attacking midfielders, that created the most cause for optimism.

Whether in the 3-4-2-1 utilized against Japan or in Friday night’s hybrid 4-2-3-1/3-2-5, it feels like something is being unlocked in this group. The players feel it, too. “We’re starting to build very positive results with that formation,” Weah said. Center back Chris Richards agreed. “I think the system really suits our style,” he said. It is, center back Tim Ream said, the natural evolution of this team under a new coach.

Folarin Balogun spearheaded the USMNT’s attack vs. Ecuador, displaying his full arsenal and eventually getting the Americans’ goalScott Coleman / Imagn Images

“It was always going to take a little bit of time for their ideas to really take hold with the entire group,” Ream said. “It’s marrying the tactical ideas and strategy with playing with energy and aggressiveness. There’s a balance to it. There’s a line that you have to get up to, and you have to touch without crossing it, while also understanding the different tactical nuances that they want. With the building in a three or sometimes the midfielder drops out – it’s just all these different ideas that they have, and it takes time to understand them, if you’re not used to doing those types of things. But I think now we’re seeing that those two things are starting to come together.”

There are obvious payoffs to the approach. Two of the most dangerous attacking threats in the U.S. pool are outside backs: Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest. When those two aren’t on the field — as they weren’t Friday — the players behind them on the depth chart also thrive pushing forward, whether it’s Max Arfsten, Weah or Alex Freeman. The formation also encourages players like Balogun, Christian Pulisic, Tillman and Weston McKennie to play with more license to read the game and create. “The manager gives us that freedom to just do what we want up there,” Balogun said. “And that shows in the way we play. Everything’s kind of just freestyle, but we’re good enough players to figure it out, and he believes in us. So that’s what we kind of just tried to focus on: attacking, free-flowing football and obviously trying to score and create chances.”But with the positives, there are also tradeoffs and drawbacks.The U.S., as Weah pointed out after the game on Friday night, has long been a team that thrives in transition attacking. That was true, too, in the last World Cup cycle. But the 2022 World Cup team was built around the midfield trio of McKennie, Yunus Musah and Tyler Adams. That isn’t gospel this time around, necessarily, but this formation changes the dynamic of the midfield.

Mauricio Pochettino surveys the field during the USMNT’s 1-1 draw vs. EcuadorScott Coleman / Imagn Images

Playing with three center backs will mean taking a midfielder off the field. And it means with everyone healthy, Pochettino will have some tough decisions to make. Does he play with Tillman and Pulisic together in the attack with Balogun? If so, does McKennie drop into a deeper midfield role next to Adams? Or does Adams need to be paired with another deeper-lying midfielder, like Tessmann, Aidan Morris, Johnny Cardoso or another of the defensive midfielders that has been in one camp or another? If Dest and Robinson are both healthy, does Weah move to the bench?It’s been one of the hold-ups around a formation that otherwise fits this U.S. group: Playing this way might mean two of your best attacking players come off the bench. Those types of difficult tactical decisions aren’t necessarily a bad thing for the U.S. (And, as Pochettino has learned over the last year, it’s exceedingly rare when every single player is healthy and available.)“It makes it hard for the coach to make a decision about who’s going to play in that role,” McKennie said. “You can look at it as an advantage, because depending on what team you play, you have different players with attributes that can add something different to the game. And even if you start with some players up top, other players (who) come into the game (can) add something different. So I think it’s a good problem to have.”

Pochettino said earlier this week that the games are — of course — important. “We need to play and we need to perform and we need to win,” he said. “Because that is going to give us the credibility in our work.”Friday’s result did that. But the more important part of this camp — and of the November and March gatherings that follow — “is not really the games,” Pochettino noted. It’s building more chemistry and understanding within the group. Friday’s performance did that, too.

Christian Pulisic was a second-half substitute in the USMNT’s draw vs. Ecuador, carrying a minor ankle knockScott Coleman / Imagn Images

It felt, from a purely soccer perspective, that something tangible is being built. Last month’s win against Japan and this result against a good Ecuador side reflected progress. And, as Pochettino noted, that builds credibility and belief. On the field, the players are starting to create cohesiveness that matters. Balogun, for example, noted that Pulisic told him he felt they are “building a better connection.” It’s something “that’s always going to happen when you’re playing with top players and there’s time,” the forward said. “That’s part of the bonding and the chemistry that’s really going to help us going into the World Cup.”Friday’s draw felt like a peek into that bonding. And it felt like reinforcement of something else Pochettino said on the eve of the game.“I think (there’s) time enough to build what we want to build,” he said. “I have no doubt that we are going to arrive in a very good way, being very competitive with all the principles settled. I am very optimistic about the future.”If the team can continue to build on what it did against Ecuador — and that’s a big and important if — it will be tough not to follow Pochettino into that optimism.

USMNT fans are finding their voice. Can Mauricio Pochettino keep them roaring?

A fan cheers USMNT’s draw against Ecuador in Austin. David Buono/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

By Paul Tenorio Oct. 12, 2025

In the 68th minute on Friday night, with the U.S. men’s national team trailing Ecuador, the pace of the game was starting to slow. It’s typical of friendlies. Substitutions start to come on to the field en masse. The rhythm of the game is disrupted. It was somewhat disappointing, though, in that the U.S. started the game so brightly. It deserved a goal. If the level were to drop and the result stayed the same, it had the potential to look like a missed opportunity rather than something off of which to build.As Tim Ream stood on the ball just on the top of the center circle in his own half, however, the crowd in Austin started to chant.In the stadium, you could see the energy from the stands start to influence the pace of the game. The U.S. team started to move the ball with more urgency. Players were sprinting into space. It led to a spell of possession that ended with a Diego Luna shot, but the buzz in the stadium didn’t drop.Two minutes later, Tim Weah had a look at goal on a left-footed shot that sizzled well over the goal. Seconds after that, the U.S. forced a turnover deep in Ecuador’s end, Tanner Tessmann found Malik Tillman, and his square pass was finished off by Folarin Balogun for the equalizer. It set off a celebration at Q2 Stadium. The supporters deserved an assist.“The fans were amazing and how important it (was) when they started chanting, ‘USA, USA,’” head coach Mauricio Pochettino said. “This energy, that is very welcome from the players, from the team, helped us to give the energy to keep pushing.”If this U.S. team starts to turn things around, if they start to sustain a decent level of soccer and a string of positive results, that moment in the 68th minute in Austin will feel like a turning point. It’s why Tuesday’s friendly against Australia now feels a bit bigger than it should. The U.S. needs to carry forward this momentum.What You Should Read NextUSMNT effectively embraces its new tactical identity under PochettinoIt’s taken a year, but Mauricio Pochettino appears to have landed on the best way to accentuate the U.S.’s attacking strengths

There is risk, no doubt, in overblowing a 1-1 draw with Ecuador in a friendly eight months before the World Cup. But I think there’s a reason for the positivity coming out of Friday’s result. Let’s be honest: The U.S. team hasn’t given the fans much to cheer about over the last year-plus. Positive results against non-CONCACAF opponents have been rare, and there haven’t been a lot of moments where the team has had a pro-U.S. crowd that influenced the result.The positivity around Friday’s draw is representative of where things stand with this national team. Fans want to believe in this team. They just haven’t had much reason to believe.art of what has made this World Cup cycle so frustrating is that this group was supposed to be different. Fans looked at the clubs where its young players were signing and started calling it a golden generation. A positive showing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar felt like a marker on the path toward something more.Since leaving Qatar, however, there has been more chaos around this team than progress.This 2026 cycle was supposed to be about taking the potential of a young U.S. group and growing up into something more meaningful. The core of players that got the U.S. back to the World Cup after the 2018 disaster were going to be four years older and four years more experienced than they were in Qatar. They were supposed to take the next steps at their clubs and that would translate to the national team.That hasn’t exactly gone to plan.

Mauricio Pochettino believes his team are now on the right track.Daniel Jefferson/USSF/Getty Images

Instead, the last year with the national team under Pochettino has been about “destroying the things that we need to destroy and start(ing) to build the house from the ground up,” he said on Thursday.It’s why the 1-1 draw with a good Ecuador side was something worth feeling good about. Consecutive performances in which the U.S. team looked purposeful is allowing people to peek their heads out and wonder whether they can start to believe again. If the first phase of Pochettino’s era was a teardown, the 2-0 win over Japan in September and the draw against Ecuador are signs that maybe the second phase is now underway.Pochettino is, as he said, building things back up.For that to be true, the U.S. will need another positive performance and another positive result on Tuesday. And they’ll need it again in November against Paraguay and Uruguay.People want to believe. As we race toward next summer’s World Cup, it’s on this U.S. team to give them a reason.Otherwise, that moment in Austin — one that feels like it could be a turning point — might just be a meaningless blip in a fall friendly that we’re overblowing months before a World Cup.

Socceroos spoil Canada’s party as World Cup momentum grows

Joey Lynch

Oct 11, 2025, 06:23 PM ETMONTRÉAL, Canada — Back when he was Melbourne Victory coach, Tony Popovic once described the chance to play the role of villain and ruin an opponent’s fairytale as beautiful. If he still feels the same way as Socceroos boss, then Friday evening’s 1-0 win over Canada might have been one of the most magnificent victories that he’s been a part of.Canada’s meeting with Australia at Montréal’s Stade Saputo was supposed to be a homecoming and a celebration. Les Rouges hadn’t played in the Québec capital since 2017 and, adding to the sense of civic pride, they’d returned with a collection of Francophiles in the squad. With a home World Cup approaching, wins over Romania and Wales in the last window had pushed them to a record-high FIFA ranking of 26. Prime Minister Mark Carney was in attendance. So was FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

Montréal expected a party. Instead, they got 60% of the ball, 17 shots to five, eight shots on target to one, and a 1-0 loss. They got Mohamed Toure registering his fourth goal involvement in three games when he sent in a cross that initially appeared set to be cleared by Niko Sigur, only for Nestory Irankunda to pounce and send a tackle-cum-shot into the back of the net for his second international goal in as many games.

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The hosts got Paul Izzo making a record-setting eight saves and laying down a challenge to Mathew Ryan for the Socceroos’ No. 1 shirt. And they got to see Australia make it seven wins on the bounce, 11 games unbeaten, and join Argentina (who did it twice), the Netherlands, and Mexico amongst the only sides to defeat Canada inside 90 minutes since the appointment of Jesse Marsch. Prime Minister Carney, welcome to Popaball.

“I think the biggest disappointment the guys have is they knew that the crowd was great, and they wanted to electrify them,” Marsch reflected post-game. “You could see the disappointment in their faces, because they wanted the crowd to feel the energy of the team and what’s being done with the team.”

By the time the final whistle rang out, any mirth and goodwill that had filled the stands before the kickoff had dissipated. Jeers rained down as fans sought an outlet for their frustration as their side repeatedly slammed their heads against an Izzo-shaped brick wall; his most incredible save came amid a helter-skelter ending in the 90th minute, when Liam Millar found a wide-open Jacob Shaffelburg, only for his resulting shot to be denied by the sprawling custodian.

“I’m very happy with the performance,” Izzo reflected. “Honestly, I’m a bit lost for words at the moment. I’m taking every game as I can. I wasn’t expecting to play today. But I was given an opportunity, and I really wanted to take it again with both hands.”

Those playing red wore their frayed emotions on their sleeve, too; Joel Waterman and Tani Oluwaseyi both got into a shoving match with Irankunda in stoppage time, only to be met by a goalscorer who refused to take a backwards step. Restrained by Ryan and the Socceroos’ bench, the teenager was immediately substituted by Popovic and pulled in for a bearhug with a message of support for the matchwinner and chief windup merchant.

“That’s something more for me and him that we shared,” Popovic said of their discussion. “I’m just proud of his contribution. He’s a young man who has so much growth to come. Now, in the last two games, he’s scored goals for Australia.

“He’s 19 years old, and we have a striker [Mohamed Toure] that’s 21 starting here, away from home against Canada. Very proud of them.”And that’s part of football. He doesn’t back down. He was coming off regardless of what happened there.”Ultimately, Australia came to Montréal and did what they do: frustrate, absorb, and make their foes pay. Few will care for the boos and some, like Connor Metcalfe, quietly emerging as a key cog in Popovic’s plans, might even have enjoyed them. Canada, meanwhile, will join an increasingly impressive-looking list of nations that would feel they did enough to beat the Socceroos, only to lose.Yet there were lessons amidst the spectacle, too. Because, as the stat sheet and Izzo’s man-of-the-match antics would hint at, Australia still had to ride their luck at times — even if breaking down low blocks has been a consistent challenge for Canada.For much of the contest, Marsch’s side would move the ball forward against a defence that was able to maintain its shape and, should the attack be maintained for an extended period, eventually settle into a low block. Against this highly organised defensive front, possessing cover for its cover, space would be at a premium and angles to goal fleeting. This saw passes being closed down, crosses being cleared, and shots being smothered. That’s all expected; the Socceroos are very good at defending, to the point we almost take it for granted.But there were moments of danger, particularly when the Canadians were able to counter-press (one of the most effective tools for breaking down a low block) and didn’t afford a chance at a unified front. Invariably, winger Tajon Buchanan was at the heart of these efforts, giving Australia’s Kye Rowles — who started as a wingback once more as part of Popovic’s pre-World Cup experimentation — fits as he repeatedly burst into the box and created shots or angles to pass.

Many of these moments arose because against the Canadian press or counter-press, Australia’s attempts to play out for much of the game were largely unsuccessful. The profiles of Rowles, debutant fullback Jacob Italiano, and midfield pivots Max Balard and Aiden O’Neill didn’t gel, and moves forward would often either break down just as soon as they began or were snuffed out when an attempt was made to bypass the midfield entirely with a 50/50 long ball. Rowles is a proven World Cup performer at center back, but as the flanker of a five, there are stronger options.

Things started to change in the second half as the game stretch and really kicked into gear with the introduction of Patrick Yazbek and wingbacks Lewis Miller and Jordy Bos around the hour mark; it taking just seconds, and one Bos run down the left and cross into the box, to demonstrate the importance of having wingbacks that have the physicality and willingness to bomb up and down the flanks — and force opponents to respect that possibility — in Popovic’s system.Expecting any drastic overhauls in the way the Socceroos play is unrealistic. And unfair. Eleven games unbeaten and seven wins straight is a platform that demands to be built on for the World Cup. However, as shown in the second half, earning wins in the way the Socceroos have is made infinitely easier when you’re helping yourself. And Popovic and his staff know this, and they’ve highlighted possession as a key focus heading into next year’s World Cup.”It wasn’t our intention to let them have that much ball. But in certain areas of the park, they’re very strong,” said Popovic.”Would I have liked us to do more with the ball? Yes. But those 20 minutes in the second half were excellent for us. Our challenge is how do we sustain that for longer periods?”If they can unlock a greater level of adaptability and fluidity, with the next stern test to come against the United States on Tuesday in Denver, will be telling come 2026. But it’s a lot easier to do this work when you’re winning games. And the Socceroos are also getting rather good at that, which is pretty important as well.