'Players need to listen' - USMNT's Mauricio Pochettino replies to Christian Pulisic's remarks about desire to play in friendlies, says squad 'cannot dictate the plan'

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Mauricio Pochettino responded to Christian Pulisic’s recent comments, in which the U.S. star claimed that he had offered to join the national team for a pair of friendlies before opting to sit out the Gold Cup. Pulisic said the USMNT coaching staff declined the offer, saying, "It's the coach's decision, I fully respect that. I didn't understand it, but it is what it is."

Pochettino said Saturday, one day before the Gold Cup opener, that it was a very clear call.

“With Christian, he explained that he wanted to be involved in the two games and, knowing that, I respect and understand him,” Pochettino said. “I understand him, but I don’t need him to understand our decisions. My position is that I am 53, with a lot of experience in football, and I was a player before I was a coach. If you want to understand this, it’s really obvious.

"It’s easy to understand that I wanted a roster to prepare in those two games because, for me, the Gold Cup is a very important competition. It’s not a problem because you need to listen and communicate.”

Pochettino opted to keep a consistent group for both the friendlies and the Gold Cup. He said in a pre-Gold Cup news conference that players don’t need to understand every choice he makes as head coach.

Pochettino insisted it should be up to the national team staff to analyze players' fitness.

"Players don't need to understand or not understand that," Pochettino said. "Players need to listen and stick with our plan. They cannot dictate the plan because, if so, then we'd invert positions, no? It is obvious, and the most important thing is that we explain. We explained why we decided not to include him [Pulisic] in the two friendlies. And then if you have some problems, it's not a problem if you understand or don't understand.

"I think it's so clear that we say that we want to start training with the same group for two friendly games. And it's up to us to assess, to analyze if you need rest or not. We have a group of professionals in performance, doctors, coaches, all in the federation, that can assess it. We assessed Sergino [Dest], we spoke with Sergino, and we decided not to include him in the Gold Cup and not in the two games."

Pulisic said he hadn’t spoken to Pochettino since the AC Milan winger opted to skip the Gold Cup. Pochettino offered an explanation, emphasizing that he avoids showing favoritism and relies heavily on his staff to scout players with their club teams.

The USMNT boss also said his door is open and that, in his view, all players - including Pulisic - are on equal footing.

“The communication is good with him, just like with any other,” he said. “I have the same communication with him as with others. I do not prioritize. You can see he's the best player and, yes, he's a good player, but he needs to perform. And I'm not going to treat him differently than, say, Diego [Luna]. If he performs well, then he's the best and he'll have a place with the national team. But it's not that players are here because they want to play, or want this or want that."

While he wouldn't reveal specifics, Pochettino said his communication with Pulisic is not a concern.

“When I signed my contract with the federation, I am the head coach. I am not a mannequin," he said. "But this is how we are and that is my culture about football. I know that the communication has gone very well because, in March, I was talking a lot about the World Cup, a lot about the different things that I'm not going to discuss. Because, for me, it's private. But, yes, I have good communication with him.”

The USMNT will kick off the Gold Cup on Sunday against Trinidad and Tobago, and Pochettino is hoping that the start of the tournament will now allow the team to move on from all of the recent off-field drama.

"We are content with our decision," Pochettino said. "Our decision was to prepare for the Gold Cup and give the opportunity to the players who are going to be involved in the Gold Cup, and to prepare for this tournament. Yes, now we need to move on. I think it's a lot of noise, but it's not affecting us because I think we are so focused on this Gold Cup."