Mauricio Pochettino has named his first United States men’s national team roster for friendlies that will see the team face Panama and Mexico. As Pochettino takes over the USMNT to stop their recent slide, preparation for the 2026 World Cup is kicking into high gear, but injuries will keep key members of the player pool out of this squad. Chris Richards, Gio Reyna, and Tyler Adams are all absent from the squad due to injuries that they’ve picked up which will cause Pochettino to shuffle some of the squad.
There is an unexpected return in the side in Zack Steffen. The Colorado Rapids keeper hasn’t featured for the USMNT since World Cup qualifying in March of 2022. With the goalkeeping corps in flux due to Matt Turner being on the bench at Crystal Palace, Steffen could be offered an opportunity to impress Pochettino. Marlon Fossey will also stick in the squad after strong performances during the last international break.
Roster
GOALKEEPERS (4): Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City/WAL; 9/0), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew; 2/0), Zack Steffen (Colorado Rapids; 29/0), Matt Turner (Crystal Palace/ENG; 45/0)
DEFENDERS (8): Marlon Fossey (Standard Liege; 1/0), Kristoffer Lund (Palermo/ITA; 5/0), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse/FRA; 14/0), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC; 62/1), Antonee Robinson (Fulham/ENG; 46/4), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 29/3), Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach/GER; 12/0), Auston Trusty (Celtic/SCO; 2/0)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 44/8), Gianluca Busio (Venezia/ITA; 13/1), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis/ESP; 17/0), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 56/11), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough/ENG; 7/0), Yunus Musah (AC Milan/ITA; 41/0), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 14/0)
FORWARDS (6): Folarin Balogun (Monaco/FRA; 17/5), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven; 30/10), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan/ITA; 73/31), Josh Sargent (Norwich City/ENG; 25/5), Timothy Weah (Juventus/ITA; 41/6), Haji Wright (Coventry City/ENG; 13/4)
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