AUSTIN, Texas – United States men's national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino praised Christian Pulisic as one of the best offensive players in the world, but said he was concerned about the AC Milan star's workload in the midst of his stellar start to the season.
Pulisic has scored six goals and added two assists in all competitions for Milan, having started all nine games this season.
“I think he is a fantastic player, one of the best attacking players in the world,” Pochettino said of Pulisic at a news conference on Friday.
“I think we are a little worried because sometimes we need to protect [Pulisic]”We see why he arrived a little tired, but that's something I told him before: to build a very good relationship with the club and try to help.”
“And when we really need him, he needs to be fit, happy, strong and have quality because he is hugely talented.”
After a difficult spell with Chelsea in the English Premier League, where he struggled to gain playing time, Pulisic has become arguably Milan's key figure in his second season at the Serie A giants.
“It's hard to explain,” Pulisic told reporters. “I think there are times in your career where you feel like everything you touch is going in and there are other times where you feel like you're trying everything and the ball just isn't going in.
“As an offensive player, we've all been there. So I try to live in that moment right now when things seem to be going well and continue that way. I mean, for me, it's the result of all the work. I've worked my whole life, so it shouldn't be a surprise. I know I have this ability and I reach this high.”
After being hired on September 10, Pochettino is preparing for his first matches as USMNT coach, with friendlies against Panama in Austin on Saturday and bitter rival Mexico in Guadalajara three days later.
And the former Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Tottenham coach said the most important thing about the current national team camp is for players and staff to get to know each other.
“We are almost 40 people working in total, and having the ability to organize and get to know each other and set the way we want to work is the most important thing from the beginning,” he said.
“Football is always about competing and winning because our fans, without a doubt, want to win. But at the same time they must understand that our first contact with the entire organization and the player, we cannot force it.” [the players] too much. “They need to adapt to use our ideas.”
Pochettino added that he was impressed by the team's “discipline to work” and the overall effort the players have shown.
Much has been said about the intensity of Pochettino's training this week. Part of that is just getting used to a new manager. The Argentine is aware that this influences the performance of the players and that intensity is not only about the physical aspect but also the mental one.
In terms of implementing his philosophy, Pochettino said he will be flexible in terms of his tactical plan, especially when it comes to playing out from the back.
“People sometimes say, 'No, that's my philosophy, my idea, and I'm going to die with my idea.' No, I want to live,” he said, laughing. “It's amazing. I want to be smart. I want to win. I don't want to die. Sometimes we can't play. Sometimes we need to find a different way to put our player in a comfortable zone, not an uncomfortable zone to play.” reduce… the confidence with which we play [with].
“You have to adapt to yourself, to your ideas, to your philosophy, because we train the player, we don't train ourselves,” he said. “We need to be a coaching staff that trains the team. We train the player because if not, we start training ourselves and then we always blame the player.
“We don't want to blame the player. We want to give him all the tools so he can perform in the best way, depending on the characteristics of the team.”
