After two years, Mauricio Pochettino has called it quits on his U.S. men’s national team tenure, set to return to the Premier League and take charge of relegation stragglers Manchester United next week.

Now, U.S. Soccer has several months to carefully select a long-term replacement, with the team due to return to competitive action in March for what will likely be the Concacaf Nations League Finals before hosting the Gold Cup in the summer.

Newly appointed U-23 USMNT manager Steve Cherundolo will be on the touchline for the USMNT’s December friendly, which will see an MLS-based roster take on Jamaica in Fort Lauderdale. But with Cherundolo’s hands full with the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, it's clear that he is likely only an interim solution.

Out of the 40 managers in USMNT history, only 18 have been born in the U.S. While B.J. Callaghan has emerged as a serious contender for the job after a record-breaking season in Nashville, there's also a strong chance that the federation will chase another big-name foreign coach after Pochettino.

There’s no shortage of “available” options on the market, such as Roberto Martínez, Julian Nagelsmann, Gareth Southgate, Antonio Conte, Didier Deschamps, Arne Slot and Eddie Howe. However, the crown jewel is none other than Pep Guardiola, arguably the greatest manager in football history and the reported “top target” of U.S. Soccer at the moment.

Could the Stars and Stripes actually hire Guardiola? More importantly, should they even try? USMNT legendary goalkeeper Tim Howard certainly doesn’t think so.

‘Absolutely Not’—Howard Casts Doubt On Guardiola

The most-capped USMNT goalkeeper in history (121), Howard never got the chance to go up against a Guardiola team, ending his 13-year Premier League chapter just as Guardiola landed in the blue side of Manchester. Since hanging up his gloves in 2020, Howard has worked as a full-time Premier League studio analyst for NBC Sports, alongside Rebecca Lowe, Robbie Earle and Robbie Mustoe.

Howard has watched from the studio as City dominated English football with an iron fist, claiming 20 trophies under Guardiola, including six Premier League titles and a maiden UEFA Champions League. However, he doesn’t believe that Guardiola is the right fit for his national team.

“Guardiola has only ever succeeded with Tier One players,” Howard stated on his podcast, Unfiltered Soccer. “The next time I see Pep Guardiola, he might smack me, and I’m okay with that. He’s absolutely not the right manager for this team, and the length of time it’s going to take to get through the next World Cup. I don’t think he’d last four years, I think he’d get frustrated.”

“We have probably Tier Three players, globally. S---, I might have been a Tier Three player myself,” Howard admitted. “[Guardiola] has succeeded at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City, but we actually don’t know if he’s a good manager coaching Level Two or Three Players. Nobody out there can tell me they know.”

BREAKING: Mauricio Pochettino To Leave USMNT for Manchester United | Unfiltered Soccer https://t.co/odXB62wsOR

— Unfiltered Soccer (@UnfilteredSoccr) November 13, 2026

“I won’t name names for the sake of mental health, but Pep has crushed players,” foreboded Howard. “Players who would walk into our national team and be the best player by 3,000 miles. Because of how hard Pep is, they withered. A couple of years ago, I was speaking to the captain of Manchester City, and he told me, ‘You have no idea how demanding Pep is every day you’re with him.’

“He’s not the guy for me.”

Howard’s podcast co-host, joint all-time leading USMNT scorer Landon Donovan (57 goals), also agreed that Guardiola would not be a good fit. “We both agree that Pep is a phenomenal manager, but this would not be right for the USMNT. Would he be good for our 18-year-old players? I don’t know. We have good, elite players, but he’s been with the best.”

“Pep is a genius who changed the way soccer is played in the world, but that is way different from having two training sessions to prepare for Haiti this week,” Donovan noted. “As a national team coach, being a manager of people is way more important than getting the team to play a certain way. I don’t think he fits for us.”

Would Guardiola Even Be Interested in Leading the USMNT?

Having only just ended a decade-long adventure in Manchester, it’s clear that Guardiola, 55, is in no rush whatsoever to return to coaching. It was only four months ago that he rejected the opportunity to join four-time World Cup winners Italy, so why would he join a team that has failed to make it past the round of 16 in their last four World Cups?

But on the other hand, it’s clear that there are some aspects that would entice him to move across the Atlantic. After masterminding arguably the greatest club team of all time in Barcelona from 2008 to 2012, Guardiola spent his first sabbatical year in New York City, before moving on to Bayern Munich. Guardiola has maintained an apartment in Manhattan and often returned to the Big Apple during his time as City manager.

U.S. Soccer previously expressed interest in appointing him in 2022 and 2024. Moreover, Guardiola has spoken glowingly about U.S. Soccer in the past, marveling: “The USA is fascinating to try and build a project for many years and being able to get the national team to the next step. The potential with the USA is there for the amount of people and sports and so on.”

Is the USMNT capable of luring Guardiola to its vacant managerial position? Probably not. But that certainly isn’t going to stop the team from trying.