Coach Mauricio Pochettino of the U.S. men’s national team criticized the officiating following his team’s 2-1 defeat to Mexico in the Gold Cup final on Sunday, asserting that a penalty kick should have been granted in the second half.
Pochettino believed that Mexico’s Jorge Sánchez handled the ball within the penalty area in the 67th minute, with replays confirming that Sánchez’s hand made contact with the ball.
“I want to tell the truth,” Pochettino stated in the post-match press conference. “And the truth was that if that had occurred in the other box, it unquestionably would have been a penalty. The player [had] a knee on the floor. He pushed the hand over the ball. It’s not that the hand was on the floor and the ball touched [Sánchez].”
The USMNT got off to a strong start with a goal in the fourth minute, as defender Chris Richards headed Sebastian Berhalter’s free-kick past Mexican goalkeeper Luis Malagon, clipping the underside of the crossbar before crossing the goal line. El Tri equalized before the halftime whistle thanks to star striker Raul Jimenez.
Captain Edson Alvarez netted the winning goal for Mexico ten minutes after the incident involving Sánchez.
According to the International Football Association Board’s Laws of the Game, a penalty is not to be called if a defending player falls and the ball strikes their supporting arm while that arm is between their body and the ground. In this case, neither of those conditions applied: the ball did not hit Sánchez; he struck it with his hand, which wouldn’t touch the ground until after he had moved it.
Midfielder Tyler Adams agreed with the criticism of the call.
“To me it looked like a handball,” Adams remarked. “I mean, when you land on the ball and manipulate the ball towards you, it’s generally going to be a handball.”
Had a penalty been awarded, “perhaps it could have been 2-1 in our favor, and maybe we’d be celebrating with the trophy,” Pochettino added.
The ex-manager of Chelsea, PSG, and Tottenham Hotspur indicated that the sizable pro-Mexican crowd at a sold-out NRG Stadium might have influenced referee Mario Escobar’s decision to not call the penalty.
“For me, it was embarrassing to witness that situation…I understand that perhaps with 70,000 people, awarding this penalty is a difficult task.”
Nonetheless, it is challenging to argue that El Tri didn’t merit the victory against a U.S. squad that was missing up to eight regular starters, including key player Christian Pulisic. Mexico dominated the match, outshooting the home team 16-6 and maintaining 60 percent of possession.
“If we lose, we lose. No issue,” Pochettino expressed. “I’m the first to admit we need to enhance our performance. I’m not complaining. I hold no animosity towards Mexico, none at all. I respect Mexico entirely. I want to congratulate them.”
Image Source: Mauricio Pochettino @ Instagram
