USMNT Rondo: Was this Mauricio Pochettino's best camp? Is Cavan Sullivan ready to start full time? And which World Cup starter finds their position under threat?

Tom Hindle: That football can be very scrappy - and that's OK sometimes! It was a bit of a miserable game for those who like to see real-life soccer (the two teams combined for a meager four shots on target). However, the USMNT got it done despite not really playing much compelling soccer, which is by no means a bad thing whatsoever.

Ryan Tolmich: International games can be very hard, and that's going to be normal. The first two games were exciting. The third was lopsided. This one was tight, physical and, at times, downright ugly. The USMNT got the win anyway. For the veterans, this is a feather in their cap. For the newcomers, this was a lesson, and it was a perfect one given how high the rest of the camp was.

Alex Labidou: If you’d told me a USMNT squad this young would go four-for-four against Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada - and play largely impressive soccer along the way - I’d have been surprised.

The first camp after a World Cup often feels like a reset, with coaches introducing new talent or new coaches beginning to implement their ideas. That’s why keeping Pochettino was so important: He now has the runway to fully establish his approach from the start of a World Cup cycle. Over the past two weeks, we saw it click, even if the cagey finale against Canada required more grit.

TH: Sullivan, by some distance. Hall was a buzzing presence and showed real versatility playing both out wide and through the middle. But Sullivan is simply head and shoulders above the rest. He's ready.

RT: Throughout the camp? Hall obviously deserves a shout, but so, too, does Sullivan. It wasn't just how he played, but how he handled it all. With the spotlight on him in ways that are different than the other newcomers, he seemingly took it all in stride and, ultimately, raised his game to the occasion. His quality was obvious, but we learned more about his mentality in this camp.

AL: Sullivan, easily. But Brooklyn Raines and Mathis Albert deserve shoutouts, too, even if Albert had a quiet game against Canada.

Raines’ best role is still an open question: Is he a box-to-box midfielder or more of a midfield destroyer in the Tyler Adams mold? Either way, his value is clear. And Albert’s ceiling is as high as anyone’s in the U.S. player pool.

TH: Everyone not named Chris Richards, Tyler Adams, Antonee Robinson or Folarin Balogun. YES, we're including Christian Pulisic on that list. This is a really good group now, and even if the USMNT doesn't have loads of depth, Pochettino has 16-20 guys he can count on when the games start to mean something. That's no small feat.

RT: Sergino Dest's starting spot is in big trouble. Alex Freeman is locked in now at right back, and you could argue that he's now one of the team's best players. Meanwhile, the new generation has multiple exciting wingers that could take the place Dest occupied in the World Cup XI. Dest isn't going anywhere because his game is irreplaceable, but he is likely now seen as a bench option, not a starter.

AL: At this stage, goalkeeper feels like the only starting position still up for debate. Matt Freese played just one half during this camp, while several of his backups impressed - Diego Kochen in particular.

Beyond that, the bigger questions concern the depth chart. Is Ricardo Pepi still assured of the No. 2 striker spot after Julian Hall’s standout camp? That should make November’s camp particularly interesting.

TH: By some distance. The World Cup sort of exists in its own universe. Yes, there was a plan. Yes, there were good vibes. Yes, the U.S. put in a good showing. But that was a flash in the pan of a camp. It doesn't really matter anymore. This, though, absolutely does. Expand the player pool properly and win four games? Bingo.

RT: In many ways, yes. The results are the results, and they obviously matter. What matters more is the progress. There was no onboarding period and few growing pains for the new kids, which means Pochettino got everything right. He had the right ideas for the right players at the right time, which is why the results looked the way they did.

AL: I wouldn’t call it his best camp, but it was definitely his most fun. You could sense that even from afar, through his press conferences and postmatch interviews.

Pochettino built his reputation on developing young talent, from his Southampton days to his work with Cole Palmer at Chelsea. With 13 of the most promising young Americans at his disposal, he had plenty to work with. You could see his enthusiasm in his willingness to tweak his tactics to get players involved.

The first camp after a World Cup is often a footnote. This one felt like a meaningful building block for the Argentine.

TH: Here goes... Matt Freese (just about), Antonee Robinson, Auston Trusty, Chris Richards, Alex Freeman; Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, Gio Reyna; Christian Pulisic, Folarin Balogun, Cavan Sullivan. Harsh to leave Malik Tillman and Julian Hall out.

RT: Freese, Robinson, Trusty, Richards, Freeman; Adams, Tillman, McKennie; Pulisic, Balogun, Sullivan.

AL: This is a tough one, but here goes: Freese, Robinson, Trusty, Richards, Freeman; Adams, Berhalter, Tillman; Pulisic, Balogun, Dest.