Legendary goalkeeper Tim Howard, who played in 121 matches for the United States men's national team, insists current boss Maurico Pochettino has done a 'very good' job so far.
"I think Mauricio Pochettino is a fantastic, brilliant manager. It's hard to come into a national team 18 months before a World Cup. So what he's had to do is identify talent, partnerships, deal with injuries.
"And I think, as you get closer to the World Cup now, less than 50 days away, he's done a really good job. Because he's got a short time to do it. So I don't know if we've seen the final product yet, which is sort of the scary part.
"But you hope that in the World Cup they can get it right and they can finally get that little final missing piece which is that togetherness and that camaraderie and just because things have been disjointed and the team hasn't always been together, we haven't quite seen that."
The former Everton and Manchester United man also believes the U.S. can handle any pressure that comes with being hosts of the tournament this summer too.
"It's good pressure. Because I think when you look at the World Cups of the last 30 years, you know, when you look at France in 98, and you look at South Korea in 2002, Germany in 2006, all these teams had this ability to capture the spirit of their home country and drive them forward.
"Some to win the title, but some to get to the semifinal. And I think this team... what happens when you're the host is: everybody has a team, but you're always their second team, they want you to win.
"They want the U.S. to do well. And so our players are gonna feel that. They're gonna feel the momentum. They're going to feel the excitement. This will be the biggest World Cup in history. And these players will feel that from all of the Americans."
Howard also spoke on MLS, the impact of Lionel Messi and a potential move for Neymar. "I think it's a different league and Lionel Messi is a perfect example, this is not a league that just rolls over for superstars, they compete, they will find it tough. Even the best players in the world will find it tough.
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"And when you are the best, like Messi, he can show you how good he is. But ultimately, this is not retirement league, that's gone now.
"And owners, and I'm an investor owner in Houston Dynamo, owners are smart. Owners are not going to spend big money on a guy who doesn't want to be here. Not that he doesn't want to.
"So if there's ever going to be a top player that comes to the league, they're going to have to be committed, and they're gonna have to want to contribute.
"And if they don't, that's okay. But this league has gone to a really good place and it attracts top talent."
