SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Before moving his attention to the knockout round of the World Cup, U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino had to resolve one issue from the group stage.
Pochettino began his news conference before Wednesday's game against Bosnia-Herzegovina by asking the media to forgive him for his curt tone following the U.S. team's 3-2 loss to Turkey in a match that had no impact on the Americans after they had already clinched the top spot in the group.
“I want to apologize to the guys that were in my last press conference,” Pochettino said. “I was so frustrated. I was disappointed. I thank you and am sorry. It was my problem, not your problem. I was upset after the defeat.”
Pochettino called out the media in the post-match news conference last week for not praising him and his team for having already won the group before the loss to Turkey.
“For you not say congratulations that we won the group, that is a little bit sad,” Pochettino told reporters after the game.
“What we need to remember is we won first place in this group,” Pochettino added while speaking in Spanish and English. “We ended up being No. 1, and we managed all the pressure and the expectations quite well."
Pochettino knows the expectations are even higher now that his team has reached the knockout round and goes into the game against Bosnia as the favorite to advance.
He has preached to his team that “relaxation brings concentration” and has told them to approach every game as if it was the final.
“If we don’t see it in this way, I think we are going to struggle,” he said. “We are seeing already in all the games after the group stage how difficult it is. ... We don’t have another opportunity if we fail. It’s all in and knowing that game is the final of the World Cup. And if we were capable to go through, the next one is going to be another final of the World Cup.”
Bosnia has already played host Canada to a draw in Toronto in the opening match and now faces a U.S. team on American soil as the underdogs. Former U.S. national team goalkeeper Tim Howard said Bosnia is “better off not even getting on a plane and going to San Francisco” for a match he believes they have no chance of winning.
But the Bosnians already defied the odds by beating four-time champion Italy in the European playoffs and now have a chance to spoil the World Cup for the U.S. team.
“I'm not concerned with things like that,” Bosnia coach Sergej Barbarez said about Howard's comments. “I have to admit, things like that happen on a daily basis. We are a small country and things like that sometimes happen. I have no problem. My boys don’t have a problem with that. ... We are playing to go into the round of 16. Is that not motivation enough? I don't notice things like that.”
Pochettino had some injury updates for his team ahead of the match, saying he hoped Auston Trusty could be available after injuring his ankle late in the last game against Turkey. Trusty scored his first goal for the national team in that game.
Pochettino said it would be more difficult for Cristian Roldan (quadriceps strain) and Mark McKenzie (foot irritation) to be available for the game but a final decision won't be made until Wednesday.
Christian Pulisic said he is ready to start after missing the second group game with a calf injury and playing only 33 minutes as a sub in the final group match.
“I feel good and ready to go for tomorrow,” Pulisic said.
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