United States men`s national team manager Mauricio Pochettino has refuted a report suggesting he interviewed with Premier League club Brentford for their recently filled head coaching position.
Pochettino addressed questions about the report on Saturday, which had surfaced from Ireland claiming he was a candidate before the USMNT`s Gold Cup quarterfinal match against Costa Rica. Despite having a successful history managing Premier League teams like Southampton, Tottenham, and Chelsea, Pochettino is currently under contract with the USMNT through the 2026 World Cup. He only took charge of the team in September 2024, succeeding Gregg Berhalter.
Brentford ultimately appointed Keith Andrews as their new head coach, replacing Thomas Frank.
“This club never contacted me,” Pochettino stated, according to the report. “I never talked to them.”
While his denial is clear, it doesn`t necessarily mean Pochettino wasn`t considered by Brentford. However, given his contractual commitment, any club interested would typically need to contact U.S. Soccer before approaching the manager directly. For Pochettino, who is currently focused on the Gold Cup tournament and evaluating the player pool for the 2026 World Cup, such speculation serves as an unneeded distraction.
Despite results under Pochettino not meeting everyone`s expectations so far, he is widely seen as the most promising choice to lead the USMNT into the 2026 World Cup. A change in leadership now would likely disrupt preparations and leave insufficient time for a new system to be implemented. Achieving success in the current Gold Cup, even with several key players absent, is viewed as important for building momentum and improving the team`s standing roughly a year before hosting arguably the most significant World Cup in the history of the national team.
Benedict Kingsley