INGLEWOOD, Calif. – There was a feeling of newness when the U.S. men’s national team took to the field on Thursday in their Concacaf Nations League semifinal against Panama. The three-time CNL champions returned to the competition with a new head coach in Mauricio Pochettino, who whipped out a new tactical look for the group to troubleshoot the issues caused by the absence of key players, especially on the wings. For all the new ideas – and there were many – a familiar sense of doom returned as the clock ticked down at SoFi Stadium, and truly set in just minutes before the final whistle blew.

On Panama’s only shot on target, Cecilio Waterman scored the game’s lone goal in the 94th minute to clinch a spot in Sunday’s CNL final, ensuring the only previous winners of the tournament would miss out on their first piece of silverware since Pochettino took the job last fall.

CECILIO WATERMAN AT THE DEATH🔥
PANAMA ARE HEADED TO THE CONCACAF NATIONS LEAGUE FINAL 🇵🇦 pic.twitter.com/3mKdPR668Y

It was one of those games where it was easy to argue that the better team lost. The USMNT not only dictated tempo, they outshot Panama 12 to 3. Pochettino admitted post-match that there was a lot that went right for the hosts, but they had not cleared the obvious first hurdle – competitive edge.

“I think we controlled the game, yes,” Pochettino said. “We dominated the game, yes. We played in the opposition half, yes. We create some strategies to move the ball quick and good positional half in the opposition half, yes. … If you don’t have aggression, it’s impossible.”

Pochettino’s focus on the USMNT’s mentality for the majority of his tenure could be interpreted as him playing his cards close to his chest on potential tactical ideas. On Thursday, though, that area of focus seemed more like a biting indictment of the status of the team he has to elevate for the 2026 World Cup on home soil.

For anyone with experience watching this team, it’s finally time to ask why these issues continue to arise as often as they do.