The Last Test Before It Counts: USMNT vs. Germany

One week from today, Mauricio Pochettino's USMNT opens the 2026 FIFA World Cup on home soil against Paraguay in Los Angeles. Between now and that moment, there is one last exam: Germany, at Soldier Field in Chicago, in front of a full house and a watching world. This is not a routine warmup. It is the final dress rehearsal before the curtain rises on the most consequential chapter in American soccer history.

And based on what Pochettino said in his pre-match press conference on Friday, he knows exactly what it is.

The Best Preparation Possible

Pochettino at USMNT in Fayetteville, GA on Thursday before leaving for Chicago. (photo: Jason Longshore for the SDH Network)

When asked what value he sees in playing top European opponents, Pochettino's answer was immediate. "We want to play with the best in our preparation for this World Cup," he said. Tests against Portugal and Belgium gave the group something games against lesser opponents never could: an honest look at what they are and what they need to become.

Germany is the next honest look. And the players feel exactly the same way. Joe Scally, who lines up against Bundesliga opponents every weekend with Borussia Mönchengladbach, put it plainly yesterday when asked about the choice of opponent: "I think we'd all rather play a better team than a not so good team. Better competition is always more fun, better feeling on the field, just to compare ourselves to some of the best guys in the world."

That is the voice of a player who has been in those environments and knows what they demand. Scally's day-to-day reality in Germany gives him a perspective most of his teammates do not have, and his comfort level heading into Saturday carries its own kind of weight inside the camp.

The all-time series sits at 4-8-0 in Germany's favor, with the USMNT losing the most recent meeting, an October 2023 friendly in East Hartford by a score of 3-1. That night was Julian Nagelsmann's debut as German manager, and Christian Pulisic gave the U.S. a 27th-minute lead before Germany responded with goals from İlkay Gündoğan, Niklas Füllkrug, and Jamal Musiala. Nearly the entire U.S. starting lineup from that night, Yunus Musah being the one exception, is back in Pochettino's World Cup squad. This group has been together a while. Saturday is about finding out how far they have come.

Nagelsmann's side arrives in the States having rolled to a 4-0 win over Finland last Sunday, outshot their opponents 13-0, and barely broke a sweat. Deniz Undav had a brace, Florian Wirtz and Musiala added to the ledger. Kai Havertz, whom Nagelsmann has called one of Germany's most important players, sat out entirely after his goal in the Champions League final for Arsenal and will be ready to play Saturday.

One player drawing attention heading into Saturday is 18-year-old Bayern München attacker Lennart Karl, who has quickly become one of the most talked-about young players in European soccer. Karl's confidence is not hard to find. "I never crap my pants," he told reporters recently. "I like to gamble. I am not afraid of anything." That kind of fearlessness from a teenager is either thrilling or terrifying depending on which sideline you are standing on.

Pochettino understands all of it. He named Germany alongside Argentina, Brazil, France, Italy, and Spain as the benchmarks of the sport, nations that define what it means to compete at the highest level. "The adrenaline," he said, "is that you want to be with the best and challenge the best." That is the spirit he wants his players carrying onto the Soldier Field pitch.

The Rotation Question and Why It May Not Matter

The question every coach faces in the final friendly before a major tournament is the same one journalists kept putting to Pochettino on Friday: Who are you playing, and what does it tell us?

USMNT training at the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center ahead of the World Cup for the final time on Thursday. (photo: Jason Longshore for the SDH Network)

He has earned the right to be coy, and he exercised that right. What he offered instead was something more honest and more useful. Every player stepping onto the field, whether starting or coming off the bench, will be fully healthy and fit to play. Full stop. He is not taking risks in the final match before the World Cup. The staff has spent weeks assessing, consulting medical personnel, and making decisions with a 24-hour-a-day commitment to getting it right.

Christian Pulisic broke out of a scoring drought against Senegal, Sergiño Dest and Folarin Balogun also found the net, and Ricardo Pepi had arguably his best performance in years. Pochettino acknowledged the team's self-inflicted wounds in that one, conceding through mistakes he expects to clean up, but the result and the attitude gave the camp real energy heading into the week. The 3-4-2-1 system that worked well against Senegal is expected to remain in place Saturday, giving Pochettino a consistent tactical frame to fine-tune rather than rebuild.

The Germany match is not about revealing the starting lineup for Paraguay. It is about arriving in Los Angeles with a group that has been tested, is fully fit, and has seen what elite European opposition looks like up close. By those standards, the result matters less than the process.

The Richards Situation

One genuine injury concern hanging over this camp is Chris Richards. Pochettino confirmed on Friday that the defender is still in recovery, training but not yet ready to compete. The plan is to assess him carefully after the Germany match and make a decision on his World Cup availability in the days that follow.

For the center back depth of a team opening against Paraguay and facing a potential knockout round gauntlet, Richards' status carries real weight. Pochettino was measured and deliberate when discussing it, which feels appropriate given the stakes. The choice between rushing a player back and protecting him for the tournament ahead is exactly the kind of decision he described as requiring a full medical team, full information, and zero tolerance for unnecessary risk.

It is a difficult decision with the risk of missing him greatly in the early portion of the tournament but regaining him for potential knockout matches. Of course, the risk is that not bringing in a replacement leaves you short-handed in those matches where results are necessary to even reach the knockout rounds.

More Than a Coach

The bond between the players has been clear in the pre-World Cup training camp. (photo: Jason Longshore for the SDH Network)

One of the more revealing moments from Friday's press conference came when a reporter asked Pochettino about allowing Brendan Aronson to leave camp temporarily to attend his own wedding. The question was framed around roster management. His answer went somewhere else entirely.

"The society evolved," Pochettino said. "When the evolution is there, I think only what you can get is the best work from him. More commitment, more enthusiasm, more energy, more everything." He talked about what coaches demanded of players when he was playing, how family simply did not factor in, and why that version of leadership no longer fits the moment. Being a leader today, he said, means being more human than in the past.

It is a philosophy that extends well beyond one player's wedding day. Pochettino is building something that requires genuine buy-in from a group of players whose club careers are scattered across Europe's biggest leagues, who are away from families for extended stretches, and who are about to carry the weight of a nation hosting its first World Cup in thirty-two years. That kind of buy-in does not come from pure authority. It comes from trust.

What to Watch For

Germany's press and the USMNT's build. Nagelsmann's side will demand quality on the ball and punish sloppy transitions. How the Americans handle pressure in their own half will be the tactical storyline of the afternoon.

Midfield combinations. Pochettino noted that some players still need game time to reach full sharpness. Watch for how the central midfield is constructed and whether Sebastian Berhalter, who impressed against Senegal, retains his spot or yields to a rotation.

The goalkeeper situation. Matt Freese is expected to start, and this is a meaningful 90 minutes for him to build confidence and communication before the real thing.

Can anyone hurt Germany? The USMNT's attacking talent is real. Pulisic, Balogun, and Dest all have the ability to create and finish at this level. A goal or a sustained threatening spell against a side of Germany's quality would mean something.

The Bigger Picture

This match is happening at Soldier Field, a stadium steeped in sports history, in a city that will not host World Cup group games but will feel the energy of the tournament regardless. For Pochettino, it is also a chance to test himself against a program he referenced with genuine reverence. Germany is not just a name to him. It is a standard.

He took this job, he said, because of two things: the chance to compete at a World Cup, and the chance to help grow the game in the United States. Saturday afternoon at 2:30 is part of that mission in both directions at once.

The last test before it counts is almost here.

USMNT vs. Germany | Saturday, June 6 | 2:30 p.m. ET | Soldier Field, Chicago | TBS, HBO Max, 92.9 The Game