HOUSTON (AP) — Chris Richards has noticed a turnaround in the U.S. team during the CONCACAF Gold Cup, a change from both the end of coach Gregg Berhalter’s tenure and the start of Mauricio Pochettino’s.
“We kind of like to fight, so I think that’s something that maybe has been missing from the national team over the last few camps, few months, few years,” the defender said ahead of Sunday’s final against Mexico. “We didn’t come into camp saying that we want to fight, but I think if teams want to bring it to us, then they have something else coming for them. Of course, we want to win games, but sometimes in CONCACAF it’s not pretty, so you have to do the dirty things.”
Mexico is the defending champion and has nine titles to seven for the U.S. and one for Canada. A pro-Mexico crowd is expected at NRG Stadium.
Richards said the Americans have bonded during their month together, causing players to defend each other when opponents challenge them.
“We love each other as if we’re a big family, and if you have siblings you know that if anybody messes with your sibling, well, I guess for lack of a better word, you kind of have to kill them,” he said Saturday. “You’re allowed to do whatever to your siblings, but nobody from the outside can.”
Missing many of its regular starters because of injuries, vacation and the Club World Cup, the No. 16 U.S managed five wins over relatively weak opponents and reached its first Gold Cup final since 2021. The meeting with 17th-ranked Mexico will be the last competitive match for both nations before they co-host next year’s World Cup along with Canada.
“I think the team is going to be ready not only to fight on the pitch against players from Mexico with the difficult atmosphere on the stadium, on the crowd, but I think it’s good for us,” said Pochettino, who admired the energy-filled semifinal crowd in St. Louis that was 90% pro-Guatemala. “It’s good because I think it’s going to be maybe the last game that we are going to play under pressure, and to play under pressure is what we need.”
The U.S. advanced with victories over teams ranked No. 100 (Trinidad and Tobago), 58 (Saudi Arabia), 83, (Haiti), 54, (Costa Rica) and 106 (Guatemala), winning three times by one goal and once on penalty kicks. The only dominant performance was an opening 5-0 rout of T&T.
The Americans entered the Gold Cup with a four-game losing streak, their longest since 2007. Defender Tim Ream, at 37 the oldest player on the roster, said it took time for them to adjust to Pochettino and his assistants.
“This is a different atmosphere now,” he said. “This is different set of coaches, different ideas, different standards, different values, different everything. And it was a learning process, for sure.”
Pochettino is a former coach of Tottenham and Paris Saint-Germain, where he guided Lionel Messi.
“From the outside looking in, they can be a little bit intimidating,” Richards said. “But then once you finally get to meet them, you understand that they’re all just big teddy bears and they all really care about family.”
Matt Freese has emerged during the Gold Cup to supplant Matt Turner for now as the starting goalkeeper.
“I think we’ve proved that we can play against some bigger opponents. I think we’ve proved that we surprise people,” he said. “We haven’t proved what we want to prove yet, and so the job is not finished.”
Ahead of the final, Pochettino gathered the players and staff for a motivational message,
“He said something about his dreams last night,” midfielder Malik Tillman said, “and about his dream for tomorrow.”
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