Pochettino hits out at USMNT complacency in Belgium thrashing | OneFootball

Mauricio Pochettino believes his USMNT side may have been complacent in a 5-2 defeat at the hands of Belgium Saturday afternoon in Atlanta. 

The Stars and Stripes head coach fielded a strong starting lineup featuring the likes of Christian Pulisic, Timothy Weah, and Weston McKennie, but a flurry of Belgium goals in the second half saw the European side run away with the result. 

"It's a good reality check for us," Pochettino said after the match. "I think we need competitive games to arrive to the World Cup in our best.

"I think we cannot arrive with the wrong idea that we are so good, we are so handsome, we are so well-dressed and we are Americans.

"And it's good to feel that, but if we want to win the World Cup, if we want to go next to the next station in the group and we want to beat Paraguay, do you think that they are not going to fight?"

There will be sizable expectations on the USMNT as they head into a World Cup on home soil, and facing a side like Belgium in the tournament would be the true test of their credentials. 

They will have another chance to prove themselves against quality opposition this week as they take on Portugal in a friendly before the international window slams shut.

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