Tim Ream has a first-hand experience of seeing a Mauricio Pochettino team up hand -- he's played against two while starring for Fulham in the Premier League.

Pochettino is reportedly set to be named the USMNT's manager in the near future, although there are still hurdles to clear before U.S. Soccer can finalize his arrival. The former Tottenham, PSG and Chelsea boss presumably will be tasked with leading the USMNT into the 2026 World Cup, which will be held on home soil.

Ream shared some insight about the manager's work at both Tottenham and Chelsea in a press conference ahead of the U.S.'s friendlies against Canada and New Zealand. He acknowledges going up against any of the Argentine's teams were a difficult task.

"His teams were always difficult to play against," Ream said Tuesday. "I don't think I was on the right end of any of the matches that I played against him."

"His teams were always difficult to play against. Obviously, he's a high-quality, high-level manager, and they were teams that were really well organized and really strong in the attacking sense. It was always difficult to play against them. I don't think I was on the right end of any of the matches that I played against him."

With Pochettino still not officially involved, the U.S. will head into upcoming friendlies against Canada and New Zealand with Mikey Varas serving as interim coach. Varas has previously served as head coach of the U.S. U-20s, and he'll temporarily hold down the for through the pair of September friendly matches.

Those matches will still feel important, though, particularly with a new coach to impress and with a disastrous Copa America still looming over all following this summer's failure. When Pochettino officially takes over, he will be arguably the most decorated manager to be hired by the USMNT, given his successes in Europe.

Ream, like everyone else who follows the USMNT, will continue to await official news on the coaching situation as the U.S. continues that rapid run towards the 2026 World Cup.

"We know as much as everybody else," he said. "We were updated a few weeks ago that that the search was moving in a positive direction. At this point, that's where everybody is at. We have been told that when something happens, we will know, and everybody else will know pretty, pretty quickly after. We've been updated, but we have not been told anything is final up to this point."