Culture
Pochettino's tactics: How he can energise the USMNT ahead of the 2026 World Cup
![Pochettino's tactics: How he can energise the USMNT ahead of the 2026 World Cup Pochettino's tactics: How he can energise the USMNT ahead of the 2026 World Cup](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15141636/1508_PochTactics.png)
Following an underwhelming Copa America as the host nation this summer and with a men’s World Cup to be played mostly on home soil two years away, the USMNT needed to go big in replacing Gregg Berhalter as head coach.
Consider their statement made.
There is a strong argument to say Mauricio Pochettino will become the most distinguished coach in the history of the United States men’s soccer team when he puts pen to paper. Across 649 games in the biggest competitions in the European club game since 2009 — including 45 in the UEFA Champions League, one of which was in its final — the 52-year-old Argentinian has built a wealth of experience, his bio weighty enough to become the face of the USA’s all-important 2026 World Cup campaign.
But reputation aside, what can USMNT fans expect from a Pochettino team? And is his appointment a good tactical fit for the current generation of American players?
Ever since Gregg Berhalter first took over almost six years ago, the shadow of the men’s World Cup being co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026 loomed large. An objective at the heart of his tenure was to integrate young talent into the senior national team, with prospects such as Christian Pulisic (above, right), Tyler Adams and Sergino Dest establishing themselves in the side under his leadership.
There was a feeling that group was approaching its collective peak ahead of this summer’s Copa America, also played on U.S. soil, but while the debate rages on around the relative quality of the ‘golden generation’ of American players at Berhalter’s disposal, there is no doubt they underperformed. Defeat to Panama in their second of three group-stage matches may have hinged on an early red card for Tim Weah, but there was a worrying lack of creativity and forward drive from midfield, in a team seemingly still too reliant on Pulisic for moments of attacking inspiration.
The good news is that Pochettino is renowned for his work with younger players, and he should relish the opportunity to develop the squad he’ll inherit, with plenty of enthusiasm and exciting, versatile options in different areas of the pitch. Players including Folarin Balogun, 23, Gio Reyna and Yunus Musah, both 21, will appeal to Pochettino — players with star power, but also with something to prove.
Pochettino’s preference for working with young players is a deep-rooted belief that stems from his own formative years when Marcelo Bielsa — later his manager at Spain’s Espanyol and with the Argentine national team — handed him an early chance at Newell’s Old Boys club in their homeland, along with several other promising players who went on to make a major impact in the first team.
He also believes that it’s difficult to change the mentality or habits of more seasoned veterans who are sometimes unable to adjust to his methods. Pochettino seems wary of allowing a couple of big names to dominate a dressing room — remember, this is a man who lined up alongside both Argentina icon Diego Maradona and Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho in his playing days.
Pulisic carries status and reputation, but doesn’t dominate to a detrimental extent. Pochettino disliked working with a star-studded Paris Saint-Germain side from January 2021 to summer 2022, with big-name forward trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe undermining his focus on the team’s cohesion without the ball.
In that respect, the profile of this USMNT squad, in terms of their ages and characters, seems likely to suit him, with plenty of time to form relationships with the players ahead of that World Cup in just under two years.
![](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15140231/GettyImages-1147882710-scaled.jpg)
Pochettino took Tottenham to their first-ever Champions League final in 2019 (Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
Tactically speaking, Pochettino is renowned for a high-pressing ideology, something that he prefers a young squad for, insisting that it’s not about physical capacity but how much players are prepared to run.
To explore his style further, we can look at The Athletic’s playstyle wheel, using his solitary season in charge of Chelsea to outline how his team looked to play compared with Europe’s top seven domestic leagues. Those defensive metrics stand out, with their rating of 89 out of 99 for Intensity speaking to the front-footed nature of their press.
A rating of 96 for Central Progression points to a desire to build attacks carefully and patiently through the middle — something that will suit the technical players at the heart of the USMNT midfield. While many failed to hit their rhythm in the three games at the Copa America, Pochettino will have plenty to work with in that part of the pitch.
Adams, 25, brings unrivalled defensive tenacity at the base of the three-man midfield setup, and is a talented ball progressor who can pick out incisive passes to the more advanced No 8s, while 22-year-old Johnny Cardoso is a strong tackler who is a similarly natural tempo-setter from deep. The technical ability and versatility of Weston McKennie, 25, proved invaluable to Berhalter across the final years of his tenure, while Reyna provided real forward drive and fearlessness from a more advanced position as the USA won the CONCACAF Nations League in March this year.
Throw in the ball-carrying ability of Musah, the devilish late runs of Luca de la Torre, 26, even the creativity and weight of pass of Malik Tillman, 22, and there are plenty of options for Pochettino to chop and change.
![](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15135948/GettyImages-2162194735-scaled.jpg)
Pochettino will have plenty of talent to utilise in America (Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
Less encouraging from the playstyle wheel above will be a rating of 32 for Chance Prevention. Chelsea’s tally of 77 league goals scored last season was their third-highest in the past 15 years, but it came at a considerable cost, as they shipped more league goals (63) than in any other season since the Premier League was founded in the early 1990s.
As unglamorous as it may sound, international football is grounded in having strong defensive foundations first and Pochettino did not showcase that in his most recent spell in the dugout.
Such shortcomings would naturally put more focus on the individual quality of the back line and goalkeeper; areas where the States’ current roster has its problems. Goalkeeper Matt Turner barely played for his Premier League club Nottingham Forest last season and his kicking and distribution were at times questionable during the Copa America. Of the other options at the position, Ethan Horvath, of Cardiff City in English football’s second-tier Championship, is a step down in quality again and conceded a poor goal when he came on after Turner was injured in that match against Panama.
![](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15135113/GettyImages-2162195319-scaled.jpg)
Matt Turner had a disappointing time at this summer’s Copa America (Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
Then there is a shortage of obvious candidates to replace centre-back Tim Ream, who turns 37 in October, plus doubts over the strength in depth that exists behind him and the other current starter at that position, Chris Richards.
Pochettino’s possession game will have to exert more control if they are to sufficiently mask that weakness on the biggest stage.
Ultimately, international soccer is a tricky arena to navigate. With plenty of time between sets of games, and a disproportionate share of straight-knockout, ‘do-or-die’ matches, ambitious projects can be reduced to individual results, years of work washed away in a few minutes of action.
It makes such managerial dismissals as Berhalter’s — and, indeed, appointments like Pochettino’s — difficult to evaluate; the “perfect” candidate nearly impossible to find. But for a squad as young as the one the U.S. currently has, with the eyes of the world set to be fixed firmly on them in two years’ time, a high-profile name like him certainly brings the experience and know-how required, even if this is his first venture into the international game as a coach.
Golden generations don’t last forever.
At the very minimum, Pochettino will bring a welcome dose of belief and expertise to this one.
Additional reporting: Michael Cox and Mark Carey
(Top photos: Getty Images)
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Culture
Indianapolis to host 2025 WNBA All-Star Game
![Indianapolis to host 2025 WNBA All-Star Game Indianapolis to host 2025 WNBA All-Star Game](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15091907/caitlin-clark-fever-scaled.jpg)
Indianapolis is not new to hosting major sporting events, routinely hosting Final Fours and annually hosting the NFL Draft Combine. This past February, it was also the site of the NBA All-Star Game. Next summer, however, will mark the first time the city is hosting the WNBA All-Star Game.
The game will take place July 19 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, with the 3-point contest and skills challenge occurring July 18.
“We are excited to bring AT&T WNBA All-Star to Indiana for the first time,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement. “The city of Indianapolis and the entire state of Indiana have such an incredible and enduring passion for the game of basketball, making the region the perfect host to celebrate the WNBA and the game’s greatest stars.”
it’s official.
AT&T WNBA All-Star 2025 is coming to Indianapolis 💫
📝 https://t.co/PKuMPP9P4j pic.twitter.com/I0Z5nCiKr6
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) August 15, 2024
The news comes amid a significant surge in interest in the Indiana Fever. Led by 2024 No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark and 2023 No. 1 pick Aliyah Boston, Indiana leads the WNBA in attendance for both home and away games this year, with the franchise saying Wednesday it has had a 265 percent increase compared to last season.
Heading into the second half of the WNBA season, which begins Thursday, the Fever have also seen a boom in other areas. Indiana announced that single-game records for sales at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse Team Store have been set four times this season, and the team store has experienced a jump of more than 1,000 percent in net sales. The Fever have added 1.3 million followers across its social media platforms since mid-April, and according to the team, videos produced by the team from April 15 to July 19 had more than 800 million views, trailing only Miami FC (the club of Lionel Messi) across major U.S. sports franchises during that period.
Ten Fever broadcasts this season have also set network viewership records with the team’s June 23 matchup against the Chicago Sky becoming the most-viewed WNBA game in 23 years, averaging 2.3 million viewers. Even appearance requests for Indiana’s mascot, Freddy Fever, are up 150 percent.
“This is a historic moment, an inflection point for women’s basketball, and there’s nothing more fitting than Indiana being at the center of it all,” Mel Raines, chief executive officer of Pacers Sports & Entertainment, said in a statement. “Over several seasons, we have built a young, talented roster that fans are excited to support, and this is momentum that we will build off for years to come.”
Clark and the Fever got off to a slower start than many expected, losing nine out of 11 games in 20 days. Since then, Indiana has rallied, with Clark, Boston, two-time All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell and 2022 No. 2 pick NaLyssa Smith developing more chemistry. Entering the second half of the season, Clark leads the league in assists while pacing rookies in points per game. She also ranks third in 3-pointers and seventh in total points, all while playing the second-most minutes of anyone across the WNBA.
The Fever, who sit in seventh place at 11-15, return to the court Friday against the Phoenix Mercury. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.
Required reading
(Photo: Justin Casterline / NBAE via Getty Images)
Culture
ESPN fires Griffin III, Ponder in cost-cutting moves
![ESPN fires Griffin III, Ponder in cost-cutting moves ESPN fires Griffin III, Ponder in cost-cutting moves](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/15132913/GettyImages-1831274406-scaled.jpg)
ESPN has fired “Sunday NFL Countdown” host Samantha Ponder and analyst Robert Griffin III, sources briefed on the moves told The Athletic on Thursday.
The decisions were made for financial reasons as ESPN nears the conclusion of its fiscal year at the end of September, per a source briefed on the matter. Both Ponder and Griffin made more than seven figures. Each was informed of ESPN’s decision Thursday morning, a source briefed on the decision said. Neither Griffin nor Ponder responded to The Athletic’s requests for comment, but Griffin referenced the move in posts on X.
“Thankful for so many people in my time at ESPN that helped me grow because they are some of the best in the business. … THANK YOU to everyone who has supported my family through my playing days and broadcast career so far,” he wrote.
Ponder was entering the final season of a three-year deal worth more than $3 million, sources briefed on her contract said. She only worked in the prestigious role of “Sunday NFL Countdown” host and was basically off for the rest of the year. ESPN generally reserves these types of schedules for the Joe Bucks, Troy Aikmans and Peyton Mannings of its world.
“NFL Live” host Laura Rutledge and “Get Up” host Mike Greenberg are potential replacements for Ponder. Greenberg is considered the favorite, according to sources briefed on the network’s internal talks.
The buyouts of Ponder and Griffin are the only moves ESPN is making at the moment, but it could choose to shed more salary by the end of September. However, the cuts are not expected to be anywhere near the bloodletting in which around 20 big names were let go last June, including stalwarts like Jeff Van Gundy, Suzy Kolber and Jalen Rose.
Samantha Ponder attends SiriusXM at Super Bowl LVII in February 2023. (Photo: Cindy Ord / Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Griffin, who as recently as last year had been viewed as a rising star at ESPN, had two years remaining on his deal. He was hired three years ago after gaining interest from Fox Sports and ESPN. At the time, sources at both networks raved about what they described as one of the best auditions they have ever seen.
He was considered strongly to be ESPN’s No. 2 college football game analyst with Sean McDonough last season, but the job went to Greg McElroy.
ESPN declined to comment.
Since Griffin’s stock had fallen, it made him a prime candidate to be let go. While his seven-figure per year salary will be honored, his role had diminished to a point where ESPN decided to not keep him on.
The first real sign Griffin was being dropped in the order was when he was removed from “Monday Night Countdown,” where he had been on the prime pregame show for two years. ESPN hired Jason Kelce this offseason to replace Griffin.
Last season, Griffin also served on one of ESPN’s top college game broadcast teams, working with play-by-player Bob Wischusen.
Over the years, Fox Sports has shown interest in Griffin. When it sought to find a successor to Reggie Bush on its “Big Noon Kickoff” pregame show, Griffin was high on its list, but it went with another former Heisman winner, Mark Ingram II.
Griffin is active on social media, chiming in on an array of issues, including when ESPN has had controversies. Ponder does not have the flurry of social media posts like Griffin, but has chimed in at times about transgender athletes and other politically charged issues.
In 2017, Ponder was given the honor of replacing the legendary Chris Berman on “Countdown.”
Berman, perhaps the most prominent on-air person in the network’s history, stepped aside, making way for Ponder. She did not have much NFL experience, having worked her way up the ESPN ranks by being a mainstay on its iconic pregame show, “College GameDay.”
Required reading
(Photo: Peter Joneleit / Getty Images)
Culture
What’s the Orioles’ secret to developing great hitters? Rival teams have theories
![What’s the Orioles’ secret to developing great hitters? Rival teams have theories What’s the Orioles’ secret to developing great hitters? Rival teams have theories](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/12172829/GettyImages-2165258309-scaled.jpg)
The Baltimore Orioles are a lesson in successful rebuilds, having gone from 115 losses in 2018 to one of the best teams in baseball — with one of the best farm systems — in five years. The O’s won the American League East last year, with 101 wins. Their farm system has produced the likes of young All-Stars Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg with the next wave — Jackson Holliday and Coby Mayo — recently promoted to the big leagues. Multiple current rebuilding organizations have cited Baltimore as their blueprint, particularly in producing young hitters.
The problem is identifying what exactly that blueprint is. The Orioles are mum on their secret sauce – there are plenty of theories – though some of their guiding principles aren’t necessarily groundbreaking. They’re just difficult to execute, such as the 65 new hires the Mike Elias regime made in roughly 18 months, as the organization streamlined the messaging from coaches in the minor leagues and prioritized tough work environments to breed more competition through a total culture shift.
“We have some organizational non-negotiable philosophies or values, and what we needed to do was find and hire a bunch of people that either believed in those or were willing to push those and build off those and that’s what we initially did,” said Matt Blood, who was promoted this winter from director of player development to vice president of player development and domestic scouting. “We drafted players that sort of fit in those moments as well. So we were acquiring players with these skills and we were finding coaches and building resources to reinforce these skills and then putting them to work.”
Gunnar Henderson was one of four Orioles hitters who made the All-Star team. (Nick Cammett / Getty Images)
While anecdotal evidence suggests many of the Orioles young hitters are good at the same things, Blood demurs.
“I think they’re just all good at adjustability,” he said, “and being able to compete against what the game is throwing at them.”
Still, there are some interesting theories around the league as other teams try to figure out what the Orioles do well so they can follow the same roadmap.
“They draft for VBA,” said a rival scout about the Orioles.
That’s a compelling idea, that the Orioles have found some alphabet soup that’s better than the analytics other teams use, and that they’ve used those numbers to find the best hitters in baseball.
So what is VBA?
Vertical Bat Angle is the angle of the bat respective to the ground, judged directly behind or in front of the batter. A “steeper” bat bath is generally associated with the potential to lift the ball better, though it can have some ramifications when it comes to swing-and-miss in parts of the zone. In other words, it’s great to be steep low in the zone but it’s hard to maintain that steepness and still hit a ball at the top of the zone.
![A visual depiction of Vertical Bat Angle.](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/12165852/VBA-2.jpg)
This visualization of Vertical Bat Angle is from an explainer article by Eric Cressey. (Photo illustration courtesy of Eric Cressey)
So are the Orioles great at this? Do they have good swing paths? Yes and no.
At the major-league level, @SwingGraphs estimates that the Orioles are middle of the pack when it comes to VBA. But the major-league team still has some holdovers from previous regimes, as well as players who fill different roles for their current lineup. In the minor leagues, @SwingGraphs found that Baltimore’s top three prospects — Holliday, Mayo and Heston Kjerstad — were second-best in the league when compared to other top position-player prospects in terms of their “path score,” which incorporates VBA. Another team’s analyst pointed out that the Orioles’ minor leaguers have the second-highest launch angle in the sport, which would be consistent with having good VBA.
Still, it’s probably not a singular approach chasing one number in the scouting and development circles. Some evidence of this is how good the Orioles have been at slugging both pitches in the top and bottom thirds of the strike zone.
The Orioles are the only team in baseball that’s in the top five of slugging in both the top and bottom thirds of the zone, though the Minnesota Twins’ offense is close. You can also see that the Orioles don’t whiff all that much at the top of the zone — the Red Sox have a good slugging percentage at the top but whiff a lot more there. The Orioles also have the third-smallest difference between slugging at the top and slugging at the bottom. They’re good all over!
So they don’t necessarily draft for VBA or value it specifically, as multiple sources confirmed. Adjustability? That’s a different story. We just saw that their offense is multi-dimensional. Executives from other teams had more theories on how the Orioles have developed bats that can slug all over the zone.
“They draft guys with present power and improve their launch angle and swing decisions,” said a rival assistant general manager with player development responsibilities. “That present power is there in the form of top-end exit velocities, not necessarily slugging percentage. They teach better Vertical Bat Angle to reduce ground-ball rates. Swing decisions plus better VBA equals power production when those top-end exit velocities exist.”
Now we’re getting somewhere. Take raw power, add swing decisions and improve their bat paths, and you start pumping out some really good hitters? And how do they add all that? How do they improve their raw, young hitters?
“They have a lot of young coaches and throw short box with them — so those are relatively live arms, from up close, forcing the hitters to adapt and see the ball out of a release point,” said a rival director of player development. “They use weighted bats at most levels as part of the regular process to keep bat speed up. They focus on making good swing decisions and help hitters internalize that as they come up through the minors.”
This starts to line up with things that even the Orioles will admit they value.
“Our training environments are very competitive, very difficult,” said Blood. “That leads to more efficiency, in terms of learning skills.”
They want to make drill work difficult and game-like for their hitters, so the short box fits that bill. In fact, those young coaches challenged each other to develop the best stuff for their short box sessions, turning their knowledge of pitch shapes into nastiness on the mound. They want their hitters to only swing at pitches they can drive, so the nightly swing decision text messages help drive that point home. They believe in data-driven techniques that have been shown to produce on-field results, so the weighted bat training makes sense. They also use force plates — devices that measure how much force a player puts into the ground, which Driveline Baseball confirmed has a lot to do with bat speed — to check on their hitters and guide workouts throughout the season.
These examples alone give us a window into the data- and tech-driven process of developing today’s Oriole slugger. But these aren’t concepts that are foreign to other organizations. So why is it working so particularly well for the Orioles right now? The talk often comes back to the players themselves.
“I think the Orioles have done a phenomenal job of getting guys with really good makeup,” Adley Rutschman told Travis Sawchick at The Score. “And once you get enough guys who are of that same mindset, because everyone is pushing each other and everyone is on the same page, it would be really difficult if guys were not bought in. When guys are bought in, it’s a lot of fun.”
“Every single one of their All-Stars has a high baseball IQ,” agreed a rival hitting coach. “Every one has a specific way they are going to have success that night. The high IQ allows them to know what the pitcher is trying to do to them that day and adjust their swing path and approach on a pitcher-to-pitcher level. He’s throwing sinkers, I’m going to be more scoopy with my swing today! He’s got a lot of ride, I’m going to be flatter today.
“Never has it been more important to have high IQ players like that.”
(Top photo of Jackson Holliday: Cole Burston / Getty Images)
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