WASHINGTON -- Mauricio Pochettino dreamed his whole life of playing in a World Cup, but as he neared the age of 30, he started to believe his chances of reaching that ultimate goal had faded.

It's why it meant so much to him when he got the call and was part of Argentina's 2002 World Cup roster. At 31, Pochettino was on the plane to the event that symbolizes the peak of the sport. And Argentina came into the tournament with massive expectations, regarded as a top-two favorite to lift the trophy.

The World Cup, though, hardly went as planned. Argentina went in riding a 17-game unbeaten streak spanning two full years. After downing Nigeria to open group play, La Albiceleste fell to England in a game in which David Beckham's first-half penalty avenged his red card heartbreak from four years earlier. A 1-1 draw with Sweden in the finale sent Argentina out, shockingly, after the group stage.

There is the lasting photo (above) of Pochettino, who started all three group fixtures, at the end of the Sweden game. He is lying on his back, long hair drenched with sweat, hands covering his face. In another, goalkeeper Germán Burgos comforts an inconsolable Pochettino, who cuts a forlorn figure with an Argentina flag wrapped around his shoulders.

He came home and fell into a depression.

"That was the most difficult challenge because I didn't want to train, I didn't want to eat, I didn't want to be with my family, didn't want to play with my kids," Pochettino reflected earlier this week at a Telemundo event.

Pochettino had arrived at the World Cup weighing about 176 pounds. But he shut himself in his room and stayed in the dark. He hardly ate. His weight dropped to around 163 pounds. He didn't want to speak to anyone. He needed to "heal my soul."

The U.S. coach had spent his whole life imagining what it would be like to get there. To represent his country. To play for the crest. He could hardly fathom, "how quickly (that dream) disappeared." Three games. Done. Over.

"There was a massive, massive impact," Pochettino said. "I think that was my challenge to recover from that. That was the most difficult thing."

On Friday, Pochettino couldn't help but think back to that moment. In part because, as he watched the highlights play on the screen at the Kennedy Center, he felt the romance we all love about the World Cup. The goals and moments that move entire nations. The feeling that gives those players -- but also the little kids who are watching and who dream, like he did, to one day do the same.

So the feeling that drove him into the darkness of his bedroom -- it's that feeling Pochettino will try to transmit to his team. A U.S. group that, for the next six months, will hear about how it had a favorable draw. That the expectations now are for this team to make history. To do something special.

That, at bare minimum, it should win the group.

Yes, Pochettino wants to build that belief. He wants the players to feel that. He wants the fans to dream, too. But he also wants them to understand that you cannot approach a World Cup with anything but humility and a mandate to pour absolutely every ounce of yourself into making the most of the moment.

There simply is no guarantee how long it will last -- or that you'll be there again. Pochettino had given everything into his opportunity and still came up short. Even so, the pain and disappointment were massive.

He doesn't want his players to look back and think maybe they could have done more. That, he said, is more important than the expectations to win, or the tactics or the path the U.S. learned this weekend.

It's understanding the moment and the power of the tournament and embracing the responsibility that comes with that.

"That for me, is the most powerful energy that I want to translate to the people, to the players, that please do everything that you have, be humble enough, try to build with your teammates a good core, a good energy, a good dynamic," Pochettino said. "This is the most unbelievable event and the most unbelievable feeling that you can have. And it is not (an) effort (to do this) because it's your dream. ... I don't want that the player says, 'Oh, sorry. I didn't do my best. I didn't do this, I should do better.' No, no. Put everything. It's today. It's today that we need to build our journey in the World Cup."

Pochettino is back again at the World Cup. He has another chance to take part in the tournament that once dominated his dreams. He wants this experience to last longer and to feel different. And he wants his own journey to serve as a stark reminder: Don't take this opportunity for granted. It might not come around again -- and it's different than anything else you'll do in your life.

"We are going to have a country behind us," he said. "We are going to play with the emotion of the people and people (are) going to feel proud about you, but not because you are going to win, because we cannot promise that we are going to win. But in the way that you are going to defend your shirt, your flag, your culture, your philosophy. ... Every time that we are going to play a game is the World Cup, it's this."