Mauricio Pochettino\u2019s expected move to Manchester United could bring more than a new coach to Old Trafford. It may also open the door to a few familiar faces from his time with the United States, after two years working closely with the national team.<\/p>\n
Pochettino guided the Stars and Stripes to the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup before signing a four-year extension through 2030. United then moved for him after dismissing Michael Carrick on Thursday, and reports suggest the former Spurs boss will be in charge when the club face Liverpool once domestic football returns, following two final USMNT matches against Haiti.<\/p>\n
His first major look at the squad could come at Anfield, and that may sharpen his thinking ahead of January. United are short in several areas, and the manager could arrive with clear ideas about which players might help solve them.<\/p>\n
Left back stands out as the most obvious issue. The club passed on fixing it in the summer, leaving the injury-prone Luke Shaw as the only senior natural option. Shaw\u2019s return has already unravelled in 2026\/27, while Diogo Dalot has struggled badly when used on the left.<\/p>\n
That makes Fulham\u2019s Antonee Robinson an obvious name to consider. He may not be the long-term profile United once wanted, but he brings Premier League experience, solid defensive instincts and Pochettino\u2019s backing. There is also the appeal of a move to Old Trafford after seven years at Fulham.<\/p>\n
Up front, United also need help. Benjamin \u0160e\u0161ko\u2019s season has been disrupted by a shin injury, leaving Bryan Mbeumo as an emergency No. 9 and Joshua Zirkzee looking unreliable. Folarin Balogun could enter the conversation because of his relationship with Pochettino. He scored three goals in four matches for the USMNT at the 2026 World Cup, although the tournament was later overshadowed by red card controversy.<\/p>\n
Balogun has some Premier League history from his time at Arsenal, and a summer move to Everton fell through on Deadline Day.<\/p>\n
Midfield remains another concern. Carlos Baleba has spent too much time injured, Youri Tielemans has looked short of pace, and Andrey Santos has drawn criticism after a difficult start. Tyler Adams, meanwhile, has a strong bond with Pochettino. \u201cWe\u2019ve built a very good relationship in the last two years,\u201d Pochettino said of Adams in October. \u201cHe knows what I expect and he\u2019s a perfect role model for everyone in the way he can translate the philosophy and the culture and represent the amazing country.\u201d<\/p>\n
United need a true Casemiro replacement, and Adams fits that brief. He breaks up play, wins possession and brings leadership.<\/p>\n
At centre back, Chris Richards may also be available. He is in the final year of his Crystal Palace contract, while the club have just sacked Pierre Sage after a poor run of form.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pochettino could arrive at United with a shortlist of USMNT-linked options for key positions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22435,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[739,713,179,468],"tags":[59,180,182],"class_list":["post-22436","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bournemouth","category-fulham","category-manchester-united","category-southampton","tag-featured","tag-player-news","tag-transfers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22436","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22436"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22436\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22436"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22436"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22436"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}