There could be changes incoming to Mauricio Pochettino’s 23-man United States men’s national team roster ahead of facing Panama on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET on Paramount+ in the Concacaf Nations League semifinals. Midfielder Johnny Cardoso will be replaced on the roster by Houston Dynamo midfielder Jack McGlynn according to multiple reports, another player who impressed under Pochettino during January camp, scoring his first goal for the senior national team.
Cardoso didn’t feature for Real Betis during the weekend as he looked to recover from a muscular injury and he has ended up not travelling. This may not be the only change incoming either as the Washington Post has reported that additional players who are not currently on the roster have been spotted at camp including Brian Gutierrez, Max Arfsten, JT Marcinkowski and McGlynn. Marinkowski is only in camp as a fourth keeper, but those other sightings could suggest that more shifts are on the way.
Considering proximity and Pochettino’s growing familiarity with the USMNT’s MLS contingent, it makes sense that so many of these players would be domestic ones to be added on short notice, but it also shows the importance of January camp to building depth around the squad. If all of these players make the roster, that could bring the number of representatives who were in that camp under Pochettino to 10.
While there are more players to choose from in Europe than ever, with those players nearing the end of a grueling season, it only makes sense that injuries could pop up at times like this. There’s also the timing factor with only three days of training before the semifinals kick off.
The MLS contingent still has fresh legs due to only playing only four league matches so far this season and depending on who is leaving camp, they’ll mainly be expected to come off the bench to provide ways to change the game for Pochettino. With the skill of the players added and what they’ve already shown during January camp, that’s a fair expectation to have and also one that could improve overall depth ahead of the World Cup in 2026 on home soil.
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