Mauricio Pochettino's 'priceless' player: Sebastian Berhalter is becoming a star and driving the USMNT's culture shift

Shortly after the "priceless" quip, Pochettino joked that so much praise might get to Berhalter's head.

"Maybe I'm talking too much about him," Pochettino said with a laugh. "Maybe next camp, he's not coming."

The fact that it won't get to his head, though, is exactly why Pochettino said it. Throughout just over a year and so since Pochettino has known Berhalter, nothing has ever gotten to him. In response to everything, good or bad, Berhalter has put his head down and worked.

"He's a very good role model player for the players that arrive for the first time," Pochettino said, "or the players that maybe are watching from home, in the way that we expect the players to behave. The commitment, of course, that is one part of him and what we expect."

His goal against Turkey in the World Cup was seemingly a springboard, and Berhalter has leapt off of it. At Boro, whom he joined this summer, he already has two goals and an assist in under 550 minutes. He has two goals and two assists in 121 minutes with the USMNT this window.

Berhalter's recent run is no doubt fueled by belief, particularly the belief that comes with scoring at a World Cup. It also comes via the belief of Pochettino, too.

"He's rewarded me since day one," Berhalter said. "He believed in me before I even believed in myself that I could do this for the national team. I'm super thankful for him, and I'm just trying to make him proud... That's all I can ask for from a coach: to put that much belief in me."

Belief only goes so far, though. There needs to be real talent and real quality there, too, and Berhalter has been showcasing that.

As he finished his answer, Berhalter caught himself, and Gio Reyna couldn't help but laugh. Speaking to the media at the start of the USMNT camp, Berhalter had called it football. A new habit, but not one he wants to stick.

"You've got to switch it when you come back here," Reyna said. "It's soccer."

Fortunately, Berhalter didn't just bring his vocabulary over from Middlesbrough; he brought his form, too. The transition to life in the Championship has been good. The transition back to the USMNT has been good, too.

"It is a big transition," Berhalter said. "Just how much they love football over there, and the intensity of it is incredible. Being in a small town, they live, breathe, and eat it, and it's fun. It's a game every couple of days, and it's a grind, but it's what you want."

The grind is seemingly making him stronger. The scouting report on Berhalter was always obvious: tenacious, energetic, incredible striker of the ball. The next step, then, is to round out his game. Pochettino has seen that, which is why he trusts him in a variety of different spots on the field. Berhalter isn't just a set-piece taker or an energy guy; he's now proven himself as a vital midfield cog that helps define how the USMNT are playing in this particular camp.

Pochettino showed that trust by starting Berhalter in midfield alongside two newcomers, Adri Mehmeti and Brooklyn Raines.

"The quality he has, the set pieces, everything," Pochettino said. "Scoring the goal from the second line. He can play on the left, can play on the right, can play like a midfielder, box to box, but also a holding midfielder. He can play like a No. 10. He can play different positions, and he's always happy."

But Berhalter’s value to this team goes beyond his quality on the ball.

Even after playing 83 minutes, Berhalter had another sprint in him. When Mathis Albert's goal hit the back of the net, Berhalter and Reyna jetted down the sideline, eager to get into the celebration alongside the 17-year-old starlet.

"I think that's just our culture," he said. "I think that's what everyone's thinking they want to do. You just want to be in that celebration, especially just to see a young guy score like that. I think that was a natural reaction."

For much of his tenure, Pochettino has harped on that culture. He had to tear some things down, he said, and build them back up. That was one of the reasons he wanted to come back to the USMNT: the culture was in place, and now he could build.

It's also why he picked his squad the way he did. He wanted the next generation to learn alongside the current one. He also wanted to empower players like Berhalter to become newer leaders within the group.

"I think he's put that upon us to take charge and to show them what it means to play for this national team," Berhalter said. "He's always reinforcing, but we're kind of there to reinforce for him on the field. I think it's important to show you know how much it means to play for this country because you're not just here just to get a cap. This means a lot, and it should mean a lot."

So, as confidence builds and goals continue to hit the back of the net, what does Berhalter feel about it all? Does he feel different? Are things changing?

Yes and no. He's more confident than before, of course, but that doesn't change things. He still feels and acts like that player in his very first camp in some ways. In others, he's someone for those actually living that to lean on.

"I'm just going to keep being myself," he said. "I think that's all I've been trying to do. I think stuff just comes naturally. It's not trying to plan that this year is my bigger year. It's just gonna be myself and kind of fall into wherever I need to fall into."

He's falling into new conversations now, earning new praise in the process. Berhalter may not be priceless, but he sure is valuable, particularly to this USMNT group.