Mauricio Pochettino did not choose the easiest path. He chose the honest one, and that matters more when a World Cup dream is being taken away.
The USMNT manager named his 26-man World Cup squad on May 26, 2026, with the United States preparing for a tournament they are co-hosting with Mexico and Canada.
The backlash came after Herculez Gomez described the reported process as “diabolical”, amid criticism that some players were told by email that they had not made the final squad.
“It’s inexcusable. For [Diego Luna] to be one of the top three most capped players under Mauricio Pochettino, and to find out via email, that’s just wrong,” Gomez said.
That criticism was understandable. No player wants life-changing news reduced to an inbox notification. But Pochettino’s response was more convincing because it did not pretend a phone call would make the pain disappear.
Mauricio Pochettino gave the only explanation that mattered
The key quote was direct. Pochettino said players who miss out “The players who didn’t make the roster, they don’t want to hear me say I apologize”.
“If I don’t make the roster, I need to think in like now, until the one day before, things can happen. They need to be ready because maybe we can call. That is the sport. That is football. That is soccer, and we cannot change the rules.”
That was the clearest explanation available. His argument was not that rejection is easy, or that players should simply accept it. It was that a personal call can become about the coach proving he cares.
That distinction is important. World Cup selection is final, public and career-defining. Once the decision is made, no explanation changes the fact that the player is not going to the tournament.
The omitted names also explain the strength of the reaction. Diego Luna, Tanner Tessmann and Zavier Gozo were among the notable players left out, so this was never going to feel routine.
The United States need clarity more than theatre before the World Cup
Pochettino also made clear that this was not indifference. He said he had lost sleep because he felt the pain of the players who were cut.
That quote changes the tone of the dispute. It shows the decision affected him emotionally, while still leaving him unwilling to perform sympathy for the sake of appearances.
The wider context matters too. The United States are in Group D with Paraguay, Australia and Turkey, and a home World Cup leaves no room for unclear squad management.
Gomez was right to highlight the human cost. But Pochettino’s response was more persuasive because it separated compassion from theatre. The process looked harsh, but the explanation was factual, honest and credible.
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