Mauricio Pochettino hasn't officially left the USMNT yet, but the players know he likely will

Folarin Balogun and Sebastian Berhalter woke up Thursday morning to the same news as everyone else in American soccer: Manchester United had officially fired manager Michael Carrick, and was heading toward hiring Mauricio Pochettino.

A few hours later, the two players sat down to talk with the media, facing a storm far from their own making. They reported that at that point, which was before practice and a team meeting preceding it, Pochettino hadn’t yet told the players of his departure. But they knew what was going on, and didn’t hide it.

“Obviously, we see everything that’s being written online — it’s something we can’t avoid as players,” Balogun said. “But me speaking personally, I don’t know if it’s true, if it’s not, if it’s confirmed. My only focus is just coming to practice and preparing for the games, and I’m sure if it is something that does become official, they’ll let us know as soon as possible.”

Berhalter reflected on his terrific rise in Pochettino’s tenure, earning stalwart status and a successful move to English second-tier club Middlesbrough.

“I can’t thank him enough, regardless if he’s the coach, not the coach,” he said. “I say it every time that he’s meant so much to me, and he’s helped me develop as a player and as a person. And as player, that’s all you can ask for, to have that trust and have that belief in you.”

The tone of his voice seemed to say as much as the words.

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“Even though he’s an Argentinian coach, he made us even more proud to be American, and I think that speaks volumes of who he is as a person and as a coach,” Berhalter said. “He’s already set a good foundation. Regardless, we have that. If he’s the coach, we’re going to keep doing that, and if not, we’re going to keep doing that.”

Pochettino is expected to oversee the upcoming Nations League quarterfinal series against Haiti, Saturday in Miami (4:30 p.m., TNT, Telemundo 62) and Tuesday in Cincinnati (7 p.m., TBS, Universo). He is scheduled to speak with the media on Friday morning, and if the news hasn’t become official by then, there will be plenty of attempts to make it so.

He reportedly has a $10 million buyout, plus more to bring his assistants along as is expected. It’s a lot of money, but easy for a club of United’s stature. And the timing works well enough for the U.S. program. There isn’t another FIFA window until March, when the Nations League final four will be played.

The only other thing on the calendar is a December camp for domestic prospects not in the MLS playoffs at that point. Olympic team coach Steve Cherundolo, who has already worked with Pochettino, can easily oversee that.

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Who will take the hot seat next? The Athletic reported Wednesday that U.S. Soccer will aim for Pep Guardiola, the legendary former boss of Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City. But for as much as he is known to like visiting the United States, there’s no word at all whether he wants the job.

The other obvious candidate is Nashville SC manager B.J. Callaghan. The Ventnor City, N.J., native led the club to the best record by far in MLS this year, and has experience as an interim U.S. manager and assistant to Gregg Berhalter. The timing of everything means if he is the choice, he can see out the MLS season before moving.

Who at U.S. Soccer makes the decision will also be interesting. Presumably, it will be from a committee that includes chief executive officer JT Batson, chief operating officer Dan Helfrich, and vice president of the sporting division Oguchi Onyewu.

The federation has not yet hired what it called a “director of men’s and boys’ soccer” when it announced in September that it will cease the sporting director role that Matt Crocker held. There will also be “a director of women’s and girls’ soccer,” and that position has not been filled yet either.

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Nor is it clear yet how much the federation’s big-money donors will be involved. One of them, Scott Goodwin, is known to be an admirer of Guardiola. As the Athletic reported in June, Goodwin wanted to put his money toward hiring a big-time manager after Gregg Berhalter was fired, and “there were three names that fit the bill”: Jurgen Klopp, Pochettino, and Guardiola.

Batson and Helfrich have yet to comment through all this. So we don’t know whether they think another moonshot is worth the money, since the Americans’ round of 16 exit this summer means Pochettino didn’t take the team any farther than anyone else has at a World Cup. Nor do we know whether the executives think any American is qualified for the job.

What we do know is that the players will miss the manager they have now.

“If I had a vote, I would like to keep things the way they are,” Balogun said. “I think things have been working well. We have a clear sense of identity, we have a clear playing style, and I think whenever you have a top coach you want him to stay — that’s a no-brainer as well. I think for us, it’s no different.”