One Man Led USA To A World Cup Quarterfinals. He Thinks Pochettino Can Do It Too.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Now 74 years old, Bruce Arena remains the only coach in the almost century-long history of the FIFA World Cup to lead the U.S. men’s national team into the quarterfinals of the biggest event in sports. Current USA boss Mauricio Pochettino has a chance to become the second on Monday, when the Americans face European titans Belgium for a place in the last eight. Some would argue that Pochettino has the responsibility, too. Getting to the round of 16? That’s nothing new. For all the excitement generated by the Americans’ performance at this World Cup — the U.S. won three games at one tournament for the first time ever, including its first knockout win since Arena’s squad topped Mexico in South Korea 24 years ago — reaching this stage represents the status quo. Gregg Berhalter did it four years ago in Qatar. Jürgen Klinsmann and Bob Bradley got to the last 16 in 2014 and 2010, respectively. None of those coaches had a pedigree — or a salary — in the same stratosphere as Pochettino, who previously led brand-name clubs such as Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. And none of them had the benefit of playing a World Cup on American soil. “It’s a huge advantage,” Arena, now the coach of the San Jose Earthquakes, told me on Thursday as Pochettino ran the U.S. squad through a workout on an adjacent field at the MLS team’s facility. Not only was soccer in a much different place in the country in 2002 — MLS had nearly folded the year before — Arena had to contend with a far tougher group stage. The U.S. opened that tournament in Japan and South Korea with a 3-2 win over Portugal, a title dark horse that boasted reigning Ballon d’Or winner Luís Figo. They then tied the South Koreans in front of 60,000 red-clad fans of the Taegeuk Warriors in Daegu, with only a smattering of visiting supporters in the house. “You don’t think that’s an advantage?” the Brooklyn-born Arena joked. “This is completely different,” he continued. “We have everything going for us. We had a pretty reasonable draw. We haven’t played real top teams to this point, and we’re playing at home, so there’s no reason why we can’t continue to be successful. I believe we have a very good chance of beating Belgium — and whoever’s next.” That would be the winner of Spain and Portugal after both Iberian nations won their round of 32 matches later on Thursday. After La Roja routed Austria, Spain’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal revealed how the bona fide trophy contenders think. “The World Cup starts now,” Yamal said. To Arena’s point, the U.S. has not yet beaten a superior team this summer. Man for man, they were stronger than Paraguay, Australia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. They lost the final Group D match to Türkiye, though Pochettino rested almost his entire first-choice lineup for that contest with the Americans having already clinched first place. That won’t be the case against the Belgians, who embarrassed the U.S. 5-2 in a March exhibition. “Belgium is going to be a much stronger opponent,” said Arena, who was in attendance at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on Wednesday for the win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. “I don’t think a player in the starting 11 for Bosnia could break into our starting 11. That’s not the case against Belgium. Belgium will have half a dozen players of equal caliber or greater, so it’s going to be a real game.” Still, Arena believes it’s a game the U.S. could — and probably should — win. Pochettino himself has repeatedly set his sights on the semifinals, or better. The country is jumping on the bandwagon in droves; Monday’s win was the U.S.’s most-watched soccer telecast in English language history with more than 24.4 million viewers – a number that jumps to nearly 33 million when taking in the Spanish broadcast. “Why not us?” has become a mantra shared by American players and supporters alike. It’s a fair question. Nobody predicted Greece winning a European championship in 2004, or Leicester City claiming the Premier League in 2016. Forget winning the World Cup: If Arena’s U.S. could reach the quarters with a far less decorated roster in 2002, on the other side of the planet, why shouldn’t the expectation be for this U.S. team to at least equal that feat on Monday in Seattle? Like Arena, Pochettino has instilled a culture where the team is more important than any individual, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Although he oversaw a group stage exit in 2006 and the loss in Trinidad and Tobago in 2017 that snapped the Americans’ streak of World Cup appearances at eight, for now Arena remains the most successful U.S. coach ever on the biggest stage. (He’s also won five MLS Cups, three Supporters Shields, and five NCAA titles during his 40-year coaching career.) “He’s really great at putting a locker room together,” said Earthquakes forward Preston Judd, who leads all Americans in MLS this season with 11 goals. With three World Cup wins, Pochettino has already surpassed one of Arena’s records. If he joins him by reaching the quarters, the 54-year-old Argentine will get the chance to become the first U.S. coach to reach the semis since Scotsman Robert Millar did it at the inaugural 1930 World Cup, when group winners advanced directly to the final four. Arena’s 2002 team fell just short, narrowly losing to eventual runner-up Germany in controversial fashion. “It’s a nice position to be in, to be playing at home and having a little pressure on you,” Arena said of the opportunity afoot for his old team. “There’s nothing wrong with that. Hopefully they’re successful against Belgium.”