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Sergiño Dest scored the US’s opener on Sunday thanks a collection of little actions from his teammatesThe United States men’s national team has undergone considerable change from one window to the next throughout Mauricio Pochettino’s tenure. And it makes some sense; the Argentine had plenty of first-hand assessments to conduct, limiting the core group’s ability to iron out patterns of play and forge partnerships.Still, amid all that turnover, Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest were expected to remain the first-choice options at full-back (or wing-back, depending on the system) for the 2026 World Cup. Both had been essential in the 2022 cycle, after all, and continued to fare well when healthy for their club teams (Fulham for Robinson, and PSV for Dest). That “when healthy” caveat has worked overtime throughout Pochettino’s nineteen months in charge, though, with Dest suffering a torn ACL just before the 2024 Copa América and Robinson missing for much of last fall due to knee issues.On Sunday, in Pochettino’s 25th game as USMNT boss, he picked Robinson and Dest as starters together for the first time. With the tandem restored, the US looked like a much more thrilling and dependable version of itself.Robinson and Dest fit the modern job description for wide defenders, although they’re hardly clones of one another. Robinson is more positionally measured, comfortable staying along the touchline and occasionally dropping into the channel to join the midfield. Dest carries a bit more dynamism, popping up all over the field to capitalize on whatever opponents offer. Both players have shown a knack for the give-and-go, and are able to forge passing triangles in tandem with defenders, midfielders, and forwards alike.They’re complementary profiles that dovetail nicely with the other presumptive US starters. The benefits each player brings were on full display on the opening goal in a 3-2 win over Senegal.Five minutes after the opening whistle, Ricardo Pepi – making his first US start since 18 November 2024 – forced Senegal goalkeeper Mory Diaw to clear the ball toward midfield thanks to some tireless one-man pressing. Thereafter Pochettino’s side began a lengthy sequence of possession, with Dest joining the line of attackers beneath Pepi while right center-back Alex Freeman shifted wider, occupying a traditional station for a right-back. The 21-year-old’s Freeman’s rapid rise from the Orlando City academy to the USMNT and Villarreal has been among the US player pool’s most vital developments. The son of former NFL great Antonio, Freeman has exceptional vision and understanding of how to maximize the freedom that accompanies a wide center-back role.In this instance, his versatility in shifting wide allowed Dest to stay in the US’s most advanced line as Tim Ream prodded the ball to Robinson along the opposite flank.Meanwhile, Christian Pulisic and Pepi scampered off the ball to offer Robinson his next option. With Krépin Diatta committing to close down Robinson’s dribbling lane along the touchline, the wing-back opted for Pepi’s lateral run into the channel.OFten an understudy since Folarin Balogun committed to the US over England and Nigeria, Pepi is still arguably the pool’s best hold-up forward – an argument aided by what he did next. As two opponents converge to force him into a turnover, Pepi spotted Pulisic making a direct run up the channel with minimal obstruction remaining between him and the goalkeeper.With the defenders committed, Pepi paid homage to his time in the Eredivisie with his take on a Cruyff turn, threading a ball between them and into Pulisic’s stride without overpowering it back into open territory.Here is where Dest’s loitering paid off. With Pepi having drifted wide to help with the buildup, the nominal right back offered Pulisic a potential target in the box.Pulisic rewarded his run with a low cross just outside the six-yard box, and Dest powered it into the net beyond a helpless Diaw.In total, the US strung together 20 passes in 64 seconds between Diaw’s clearance and Dest’s goal. Those final four passes – from Ream to Robinson to Pepi to Pulisic to Dest – took the team from inside its own half to a tap-in in just ten seconds. It’s a sequence that simply can’t happen on the international stage without some well-forged chemistry.Combinations like the ones maximized in this sequence haven’t been repeated often during the new manager’s surveil of the player pool. Those efforts unearthed understudies and alternatives, like Freeman and backup left-back Max Arfsten, but it has left Pochettino’s side without a distinct tactical identity amid all of his chopping and changing.You can still catch glimpses of this lack of understanding in the United States’ momentary lapses, as seen on Sadio Mané’s first goal to bring Senegal back into the game. Already up 2-0, Robinson attempted a one-two with Adams, another pair that hadn’t started alongside one another since November 2024. While Robinson was able to nutmeg his mark, the ball was undercooked and easy for Diatta to seize, beginning a break upfield that required just two passes to turn the turnover into a goal.On the whole, though, the US looked more in sync on Sunday than they have in a while; a vital step to restore hope around this team. The returnees who brought the US to the round of 16 in 2022 are refining those past combinations while forging new ones with newer members like Freeman and Sebastian Berhalter. Effective pressing and off-ball movement requires such cohesion, and they’ll need it.The US should expect to face a low block against its first two group stage opponents (Paraguay and Australia) before a stakes-dependent showdown with Turkey that could offer scarce openings behind the backline. Senegal proved more adventurous than any of these group opponents, stationing its block further upfield, so it’s possible that spaces like those seen on Dest’s goal will be much harder to come by.For now, however, there’s reason for optimism once again around the tournament co-host. Pulisic is back among the goals. The US has beaten a second opponent in four games among the world’s top dozen. And with Robinson and Dest maximizing wide areas together at last, those byways to advance upfield have reopened just in time.

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Pulisic scores and assists in first half to break rotten runSergiño Dest opens scoring just seven minutes inUS final tune-up comes v Germany on 6 June in ChicagoChristian Pulisic broke a nearly six-month period without a goal on Sunday, assisting on the US opener and scoring a lovely goal himself not long afterward to lead the US to a 3-2 victory against Senegal in Charlotte, North Carolina.Playing in front of 57,741 in the first of two send-off matches ahead of this summer’s World Cup, the US looked lively throughout the match, a far cry from the dour pair of performances they put in against Portugal and Belgium in March. And the sterling performance from Pulisic, perhaps their most important attacking player, offers plenty of reasons for optimism for a program that had few of those after the two-loss March international window.The encouraging effort did leave lingering questions, though, about the US’s ability to defend and manage games. Senegal’s Sadio Mané scored just before and after half-time, with both goals coming off of US defensive breakdowns, continuing a troubling trend for the Americans.In other cycles, send-off matches have served largely as a celebratory tour for the team, an opportunity to make tiny adjustments and build confidence. The buildup to this World Cup has felt different, as US head coach Mauricio Pochettino has faced a bevy of questions ahead of an all-important tournament on home soil.Pulisic’s poor form aside, Pochettino has yet to name a starting goalkeeper and neither Matt Turner, who started on Sunday, nor NYC FC’s Matt Freese has emerged as a clear frontrunner. Questions have lingered, as well, about the US’s mentality, and about the exclusion of a handful of players from Pochettino’s 26-man roster.Pochettino’s lineup on Sunday was a mix of locked-on starters and reserves. Midfielder Gio Reyna made his first start for club or country since November 2025, when the US beat Paraguay in a friendly. Turner, fresh off a run of excellent club form with the New England Revolution, got the nod in goal. Pochettino also started Pulisic, perhaps seeking to give the Milan midfielder another chance to break his dry spell.Pulisic did so 19 minutes into a match that already felt firmly in the US’s grasp. PSV forward Ricardo Pepi, who was excellent throughout his 45-minute stint, found Pulisic with a through ball 20 yards from goal. A deft first touch towards the far side of the box took Senegal goalkeeper Mory Diaw out of the play and Pulisic’s right-footed, angled finish put the US ahead 2-0.Pulisic was involved in the US opener, as well, which was among the nicer team goals they’ve scored in quite some time, a 10-pass sequence capped off by PSV wing-back Sergiño Dest. US captain Tim Ream found Fulham’s Antonee Robinson at the near sideline. Robinson found Pepi further upfield, who slyly found Pulisic running towards goal. Pulisic’s pinpoint cross across the face of goal was touched home by Dest.The assist was Pulisic’s first international goal contribution since September 2025, when he notched an assist in the US’s 2-0 friendly victory over Japan.Senegal entered Sunday’s match having put together convincing wins over the Gambia and Peru in March. Arguably Africa’s best team – they somewhat controversially won the 2025 Afcon final before being stripped of the title – the Lions of Teranga are preparing for their fourth World Cup. Mané’s well-taken goal came off an errant pass from Robinson, with Tyler Adams beaten to the final ball as well.The US made wholesale changes at half-time, replacing every player on the pitch except for midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and, surprisingly, inserting Brady in goal. Brady, the presumed third-choice for the US, has been arguably the best keeper in MLS in recent months, thrusting him back into the already-murky pecking order. He did little to help his case on Sunday.Just minutes into the second half, Senegal equalized. Miles Robinson’s poor back pass was pounced on by Mané, who crashed goalwards. Brady was late off his line and unable to intervene.Conceding within minutes of half-time has become a habit of the US, who gave up goals within 10 minutes of the half-time whistle in both March friendlies. In their 2-0 loss against Portugal, they very nearly did so on both sides of it.The US’s third and final goal came off the right foot of Folarin Balogun in the 62nd minute. Weston McKennie, who found himself in the final third after pressing Senegal’s backline moments earlier, controlled the ball at the near edge of the area, feeding Timothy Weah out wide. His well-hit cross was deflected but found Balogun, who sealed the victory for the US.For as many conclusions may be drawn from this game, there’s no clear correlation between how the US play in send-off matches and how they perform at a World Cup. The US beat up on Venezuela and Latvia in 2006 before laying an egg in the group stage not long after. In 2002, just before the USassembled their best World Cup finish in the modern era, they played a lackluster friendly against the Netherlands.The US have never lost both send-off matches ahead of a World Cup, though – and Sunday’s result ensures they won’t break that record. More importantly, the win served as a much-needed boost of confidence to US players and fans alike.

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Mauricio Pochettino hold new Nike footwear during USMNT training. Photograph: John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty ImagesOptimism is not high for Mauricio Pochettino’s co-hosts, who are under pressure to justify fans’ considerable outlay on ticketsThis article is part of the Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 48 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from three countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June.Host nations get a direct runway to the tournament field, but a qualifying campaign would have likely helped clarify the USA’s ideal approach.While Mauricio Pochettino has overseen immense tactical fluctuation throughout his half-cycle in charge, the aim is always to retain at least shared custody of proceedings. The USA had about 60% of possession against lower-ranked opponents such as Paraguay, Australia, and Ecuador last autumn, while clashes with presumed favorites (recently: Uruguay, Japan, and Belgium) saw closer to a 50/50 split. Pochettino’s longtime penchant for high pressing has largely been absent in this role, instead focusing on establishing a mid-block defense to try limiting the opponent’s final-third touches.In possession, the USA works to string passing sequences up the channel, recently utilising a pair of attacking midfielders and a double-pivot behind them to better navigate the middle of the park. Width almost entirely falls on full-backs or wingbacks, with midfielders occasionally drifting off-center to create numerical advantages.Despite a thin center-back corps, Pochettino saw great success with a back three and wingbacks last fall … only to revert to a 4-2-3-1 in a disastrous 5-2 thrashing against Belgium in March.Both formations largely operate the same, with a 3-2-5 in possession and a 4-4-2 or 5-3-2 when defending. It’s a classic predicament of personnel: will Pochettino get his team in its best structure with five defenders (the 5-1 win over Uruguay), or get more of his best players on the pitch in spite of the tactical ramifications (the Belgium bummer)?“Belgium and Portugal have, in the top 100 players, [a] few or some players in that top 100. I think we don’t have [any],” Pochettino said after a 2-0 loss to Portugal. It was their final match before his squad was named. Gulp!While they may not be world-beaters, Pochettino’s 26 picks have received the more welcome WhatsApps and emails than those left off the squad. There are proven glue guys who help the squad regardless of their on-field roles, and a determination for a more harmonious environment than four years ago. Once the whistle blows, this group remains determined to show they can control games more than the bunker-and-counter iterations of bygone World Cups. All that’s left for them to do is to play in such a stylish manner and get results against top opposition.One of a few celebrity managers at this tournament, Mauricio Pochettino opted to test international soccer after a grueling and thankless stint with Chelsea. As a player, he represented Argentina at the 2002 World Cup, offering physicality and sharp tactical reading at center-back. He’s forever a beloved figure in some parts of north London after guiding Tottenham through its best stretch of the modern era. Appointed in 2024 after the USMNT went out in the groups at a home Copa América under Gregg Berhalter, Pochettino is expected to return to the club scene following this tournament.While Pochettino and the Guardian’s voting panel have omitted him from the top 100 players in the world, Christian Pulisic is a proven match-winner for the USA and Milan alike. The 27-year-old has been the face of the program since it missed out on the 2018 World Cup, bearing immense pressure to lead the USMNT into a brave new era of contention rather than competence. This year has been tough for the Hershey-born forward, goalless since last December in all arenas. Nonetheless, his ability to bypass opponents and set up a shot makes him a marking priority in every match.Following the exits of Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey, the USA got through the 2022 cycle with a striker-by-committee approach. It was a coup, then, when Folarin Balogun committed to his birth nation over England and Nigeria: an Arsenal-raised striker worth more than $40m in the transfer market. Balogun is a fine finisher, with the requisite movement to earn tap-ins away from opponents and the turn-and-shoot chops to fire from just about anywhere inside 25 yards with the right service. His form with Monaco has fluctuated but he was largely in-form this spring. He’s the latest danger man to wear the No 20 shirt for the USA, following Brian McBride.Aside from possibly Tyler Adams, no player is more irreplaceable in this USA roster than Chris Richards. An FA Cup winner with Crystal Palace in 2025, Richards is the surest presence along the backline in the program, a modern center-back with strong defensive rates on the ground or aerially and the range of passing to work into possession schemes. His club exploits were largely overshadowed by Marc Guéhi’s until the England man’s departure; similarly, his partnership with Tim Ream was an unheralded strength for much of this cycle. A dependable set of shifts this summer could inspire the next generation to appreciate the art of defending.Optimism is in short supply after the calamitous March window, coupled with feeling wrung out for every dollar with this World Cup’s pricing model. The rates are so lavish, in fact, that it’s hard to guarantee similar support to past tournaments with far friendlier pricing models. The four-figure get-in point could alter morale in the stands with more pressure to justify the outlay. You know the rest: red, white and blue, “U-S-A! U-S-A!” and cosplayers as Revolution patriots and bald eagles abound.While hosting the 1994 World Cup catalyzed this nation’s interest in the game, 2026 was seen as a trampoline upon which the sport would spring to even more prominence. Domestic leagues have synced their mid-to-long-term planning with this summer hoping to maximize reach to newcomers. If fans don’t flock (again: it’s insanely expensive to get in) to find their local club, some worry about attrition among the investor class.As for the lads on the field: last-16 exits in 2010, 2014, and 2022 have left the program without a quarter-final showing since 2002. They were once hyped as a possible golden generation and a deep run would make amends for an up-and-down cycle and justify Pochettino’s lavish wages. If not, fans will be eager to get on to the next generation in hopes of becoming a bona fide top-10 team worldwide.