Mauricio Pochettino has warned young American players against "arrogance" in their ambitions of a senior call-up.

The USA will face Peru later this month in their first match since reaching the last 16 at the 2026 World Cup on home soil.

Pochettino's side topped their group before beating Bosnia-Herzegovina in the round of 32, but they then fell to a dreadful 4-1 defeat against Belgium.

The USA will also go up against Chile, Mexico and Canada during the upcoming international break, with many young stars hoping for a call-up.

The New York Red Bulls' Julian Hall has impressed in MLS this season, while 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan has led the Philadelphia Union's resurgence in recent weeks.

Sullivan recently appeared on the Union's podcast and stated he felt he could have made an impact at the World Cup for the USA.

While Pochettino did not directly mention Sullivan's name, he advised younger players to show humility in their actions.

"We are watching everything, we are seeing everything," Pochettino said.

"We are very happy to have all these potentially good players. Being young, and with a possibility to perform and to play. Only we need to be careful, no?

"We need to be careful because when you are young, of course, you need to be confident.

"You need to have the trust in yourself and believe that you can perform and you can do well. But I think there is a limit.

"The balance is the most important. And one of our responsibilities is to protect these guys, because sometimes, if you play well and you are 16, 17 or 18, and people start to talk [like] you are [Lionel] Messi, or you are a big star in the world because you do a few good things.

"If after, you are confused and you don’t manage [it] well, that can be dangerous for your career and that is what we don’t want. We don’t want that [for] the young guys with potential of being top players.

"I think you are only entitled to talk a little bit out of order if you are Messi. If you've won eight Ballon d'Ors, okay, you can talk with a certain arrogance.

"But even Messi, you are never going to hear him talking in this way.

"But if you are young and you start to talk that you can play here, you can play there, or you can play, I don't believe that this is going in the right way to build your career in the best way.

"And that is why we need to be careful."