Last summer's Copa America is not a tournament that will be fondly remembered by either the United States or Mexico.
Neither team made it out of the group stage, and both federations fired the men tasked with leading those squads -- managers Gregg Berhalter and Jaime Lozano -- within six days of one another.
In their places arrived Mauricio Pochettino and Javier Aguirre, respectively, to rejuvenate the regional powers ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup that they will co-host along with Canada.
Pochettino, with a glittering managerial résumé that includes spells in charge of Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, was billed as the man-management savant who would unlock the potential of this golden generation of American players. Mexico's appointment of Aguirre, for his third tour in charge of El Tri, sorely lacked the imagination and the boldness of the recruitment of the new coach to the north.
And yet, in the months since, that's not how things have played out. The U.S. has five wins and three losses under Pochettino, including this month's Concacaf Nations League semifinal and third-place defeats to Panama and Canada, while Aguirre's Mexico is 5-1-1, culminating in a Nations League title Sunday.
So what has worked, and hasn't, for each of these managers? ESPN's Jeff Carlisle and Omar Flores Aldana detail the divergent fortunes of Pochettino and Aguirre.
Pochettino's culture problem
When Pochettino was hired as manager of the USMNT in September, the Argentine was faced with numerous issues that needed addressing. There were questions of personnel, playing style and tactics, as well as restoring confidence in a side that had been humiliated at the 2024 Copa America, when it exited the tournament without getting out of the group stage.
But since that sunny day in New York -- and especially in the wake of the U.S.'s dismal showing in the just-concluded Nations League -- one issue has emerged above all others: the team has a culture problem.
Granted, "culture" is a word that gets tossed around a bit, especially when things aren't going well. It also means different things to different people. But loosely translated, it means having the discipline, focus and desire to do the little things that are often the difference between winning and losing.
Following Sunday's 2-1 loss to Canada -- the second consecutive defeat to the Reds on home soil, something that had never happened before -- midfielder Tyler Adams provided some additional insight.
"I think we need to have every single person buy into exactly what we're doing and what we're trying to do, but it's just the little things for me: duels, tackles, leaving your mark on the field, not being naive in certain moments, being a little bit more clever," he said. "All the details of the games that I feel like when I watch people play with their clubs, we do. And then when we come here, sometimes I think we forget a little bit what the games are going to give us."
Pochettino seemed to sense this from the moment he took the job. Even back in September, he spoke often of competing, as if it were something that the U.S. needed to improve upon. That assessment was reinforced in the CNL finals, although the U.S. did a better job of competing against Canada. According to TruMedia, the U.S. won 78% of its tackles.
The last two sentences of Adams' quote are especially damning, though. This isn't about players being unable to do what Pochettino wants; it's about carrying over the same level of urgency that is displayed at club level. And if players aren't buying in, as Adams suggests, then Pochettino needs to look for alternatives.
At minimum, it points to some resistance to what Pochettino is demanding. It's worth remembering that Pochettino has been in charge for only six months, amounting to four windows, one of which was purely for up-and-coming prospects. But the proximity of the World Cup has added an increased sense of tension to every training camp, every match, every misplaced touch and shanked pass. That will increase when the team reconvenes in late May ahead of the Concacaf Gold Cup.
At the moment, more players are shrinking from the moment rather than meeting it. That tournament now represents a critical opportunity for Pochettino to further imprint his philosophy on the players, while also determining which performers are willing to buy in. He'll be with the team for more than a month, giving him the kind of extended, day-to-day interaction that he was used to having when he was a manager at club level.
So what does Pochettino do? He can look at different players, as well as demand more from the ones he already has.
"Pochettino needs to be harder," as former U.S. midfielder Tab Ramos put it.
Pochettino will likely do so without Borussia Dortmund midfielder Giovanni Reyna and the Juventus duo of Weston McKennie and Timothy Weah, who will all be participating with their respective clubs at the FIFA Club World Cup. There may be some benefit in their absences, though.
The core players of the U.S. team that established itself during the 2022 cycle has been given immense deference this cycle -- under two different managers -- regardless of whether their performances for club or country warranted it. Put simply, the team needs more from its best players.
Now Pochettino will have some freedom to look elsewhere and continue a process that began Sunday, in which he gave up-and-comers like Patrick Agyemang and Diego Luna an opportunity to shine. Some fringe players excelling for their clubs, like Club America's Alejandro Zendejas, should get a look as well.
Given that Pochettino and Aguirre took charge of their respective teams at around the same time, there's an impulse to compare where the two rivals are, especially in light of Mexico's triumph in the CNL. Aguirre had the advantage of taking over a Mexico side that had hit rock bottom, though, while the U.S. wasn't quite there yet.
Gabriele Marcotti and Julien Laurens discuss whether Mauricio Pochettino is the right man for the United States after losing to Canada in the CONCACAF Nations League.
It's certainly getting closer to that point. -- Carlisle
Javier Aguirre is on a mission: save Mexico
Mexico's MVP right now has to be Aguirre. He avoided the hype before the Concacaf Nations League, saying that inside the Mexican Soccer Federation they "haven't talked about winning." Yet a few days later, he returned home from the U.S. with a trophy Mexico had never won before.
A culture of effort and discipline is Aguirre's guiding mantra as a manager. The man they call "Vasco" announced before the tournament that the Nations League was a drill to design his team ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
He did note the incentive for El Tri to end the U.S. dominance in the continental competition, though that motivation was more for marketing purposes and to pack SoFi Stadium with fans rather than additional fuel for his players. Inside the locker room, Aguirre was crystal clear: Everyone must fight for a place in the starting team, no exceptions.
José del Valle says Mexico's Concacaf Nations League win over Panama wasn't convincing enough to brand them as the standout Concacaf team.
He told that to everyone from Guillermo Ochoa (not called up for these games) to Alexis Vega, who had a couple of games to show he can be the clutch player Mexico needs.
Raul Jimenez was the first player to earn his place on the field. The Fulham striker scored a couple of goals against Canada and then repeated the feat against Panama to lead Mexico to glory. However, goals were not the only highlights for the former Wolves striker, who emerged as the leader of a team that still has many flaws to fix.
"It's unfair saying that we only won because of guts," Aguirre said after the celebrations ended in Inglewood on Sunday night. At the same time, he recognizes there is space to improve, like figuring out a better connection between his midfielders and forwards, and finding an additional attacking threat from the wings.
There's no question Jimenez is, right now, the best player on the team. Aguirre says he has "four or five players" who would form El Tri's base for the 2026 World Cup. They might be Jimenez alongside central defenders Johan Vasquez and Cesar Montes, plus goalkeeper Luis Angel Malagon.
Having missed the chance to battle the U.S. in the final, Mexico won a tournament it had lost three times previously. Aguirre came back with gold, and in doing so established himself as a key piece in building a team that was eliminated in the 2024 Copa America group stage and is now a threat this summer.
The next testing ground for this team: the Gold Cup. Don't bet against Aguirre there, either. -- Flores Aldana