Newly appointed Manchester United coach Mauricio Pochettino couldn’t hold back his tears after his departure from the United States Men’s national team was confirmed on Friday.

Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Pochettino described leaving the national team as “one of the most difficult decisions” of his career.

A teary Pochettino said, “It’s difficult now to talk for me because I am a very emotional guy. I think always when we started to talk about that idea of becoming a head coach of this amazing country, this amazing federation, we were very excited about that, and to share a project that we really, really believe in, and a project and a programme that we were evolving together. That is why it makes more difficult that decision. A decision that in some parts is a very sad decision.”

Flanked by U.S. Soccer president Cindy Parlow Cone and chief executive JT Batson, Pochettino thanked the federation’s staff for the moments and achievements they shared with the national team.

“We recovered our capacity to dream big, the capacity to train players that really want to improve and really want to share good moments, and players that really care about the federation and this country, and they want to put the country and the federation in the place that it deserves to be.

“You never lied to us. The human being is in front of everything, and that is why this is a really difficult decision. But we need to move forward. But a big thank you from my heart and from my people, because you always were transparent. We learned a lot from you all from this country. I think it was one of the most difficult decisions in our whole career,” he said.

The Argentine’s appointment followed Thursday’s sacking of Michael Carrick, who guided Manchester United to record their worst start to a season since 1986.

Pochettino will assume his new appointment on Wednesday, after the U.S. Nations League matches against Haiti on Saturday and Tuesday.