Pochettino praises Pulisic after USMNT win over Senegal
The USMNT manager highlighted the team's attitude and commitment in their friendly win, while noting areas for defensive improvement.
Mauricio Pochettino has challenged Christian Pulisic to build on his standout performance in Sunday's 3-2 friendly victory over Senegal. The USMNT manager was impressed by the forward's high-energy display, which saw him finally break a five-month goal drought.
«The performance of Christian, for 45 minutes, was really, really good,» Pochettino told reporters. «He still has the potential to improve. But I think it is the way that he is training from day one. Every day training with this attitude, with this commitment, with this energy. Now we need to try to extend it until 90 minutes.»
The match in Charlotte saw the U.S. open a two-goal lead through Sergiño Dest and Pulisic. Although Senegal fought back, Folarin Balogun secured the win after coming off the bench. For Pochettino, the result was a crucial boost following recent losses to Belgium and Portugal.
Despite the win, Pochettino emphasized that defensive errors remain a concern. «The way that we concede the goals I think we need to improve. Not to allow the opponent to create the chances that we concede. In my opinion, we conceded through our own mistakes,» he added.
The victory provides a positive environment for the squad as they prepare for their final warm-up match against Germany on June 6. With the World Cup Group D opener against Paraguay less than two weeks away, the manager hopes this result helps the players and fans believe in the team's potential.