GUADALAJARA, Mexico - Mauricio Pochettino is many things. He isn't a wizard. There was no magic or spells he could wave over this U.S. men's national team to make it perfect. If you didn't think so before, you definitely realize now.
Ultimately, a short-handed USMNT didn't have what was necessary to go toe-to-toe with their fierce rivals. Poch magic or no Poch magic, this was Mexico's night from bell to bell.
El Tri ran away 2-0 winners on Tuesday night at the Estadio Akron and, in reality, it wasn't even that close. Facing a USMNT group missing seven starters - including team leader Christian Pulisic - Mexico showed no mercy. This was their chance to end five years of frustration, beating their rivals for the first time since 2019 and and taking out their frustration on a USMNT group that felt like a proverbial deer in the headlights.
Raul Jimenez's stunning free-kick midway through the first half opened the scoring but, in reality, that didn't tell the story. A free-kick is an individual moment, but this match was team-wide dominance. Mexico outshot the USMNT 16-5. They nearly doubled their passing output in the opposing half. The USMNT had less than a dozen touches in the Mexico box. That paints a picture of how one-sided this was.
When Cesar Huerta's goal hit the back of the net just four minutes after halftime, it felt like there would be no way back for the USMNT. Whatever halftime speech Pochettino game was instantly rendered meaningless the moment Mexico collectively celebrated their 2-0 lead. There was that infamous "Dos a Cero" again but, this time, it went the other way. The USMNT's all-time record in games vs. El Tri in Mexico fell to 1-24-4.
The USMNT is 18th overall in the latest FIFA rankings, while Mexico is 17th, the highest current rank among CONCACAF teams.
"It wasn't a great performance," Pochettino said following the match. "It's perfect for us to learn [from]...We started the game well, but after we conceded the goal after 22 minutes the impact was massive for us."
A hard lesson, for sure, but one that comes at the right time for the USMNT. The shine wore off a little bit in Guadalajara on Tuesday night, coming off a 2-0 win over Panama in his USMNT debut. And it came in a match that will leave Pochettino with about as many questions as answers.
GOAL rates USMNT players from Estadio Akron.