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Fox Sports
3 hours ago
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- Fox Sports
Projecting USA's 2026 World Cup squad: Tillman, Luna leapfrog Reyna post-Gold Cup
FIFA Men's World Cup Projecting USA's 2026 World Cup squad: Tillman, Luna leapfrog Reyna post-Gold Cup Published Jul. 22, 2025 5:45 p.m. ET share facebook x reddit link Just because the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup ended in tears for Mauricio Pochettino doesn't mean the U.S. men's national team coach didn't get what he wanted this summer. Sure, winning the tournament was the priority. After a hastily thrown-together group of Americans — a group that was missing star forward Christian Pulisic and about a dozen other regulars — willed their way to the final before losing a hard-fought match to rival Mexico in front of 71,000 mostly El Tri fans, of course it hurt. But Pochettino learned an awful lot about his players in June and July — lessons that will help inform the many difficult decisions he must make next May, when the co-hosts' 26-man roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup must be submitted to global soccer's governing body. Ten months out, who projects to make the cut? Here are our best guesses as things stand today. Goalkeepers (Photo by Stephen Nadler/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) Starter: Matt Turner Backups: Matt Freese, Zack Steffen Just missed out: Chris Brady, Diego Kochen, Patrick Schulte, Gaga Slonina Although Pochettino was determined to give another keeper a look during the Gold Cup — Freese became the beneficiary when Steffen and Schulte withdrew from the squad because of injury — Turner projects to reclaim the No. 1 job. He should at least get the chance: The 2022 World Cup starter is expected to leave Premier League Nottingham Forest for French club Lyon before the Ligue 1 season kicks off next month. Turner, 31, would replace Brazilian Lucas Perri, who has drawn interest from England this summer. ADVERTISEMENT Freese probably played his way onto the 2026 roster at the Gold Cup; his three saves in a shootout win over Costa Rica (and legendary Ticos backstop Keylor Navas) sent the Americans to the semifinals. The third spot is still up for grabs. But the smart money is on veteran Steffen. Had he not been sidelined, the 31-year-old former Manchester City backup would've been Pochettino's Gold Cup pick. Defenders (Photo by John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) Starters: Sergino Dest, Chris Richards, Tim Ream, Antonee "Jedi" Robinson Backups: Max Arfsten, Alex Freeman, Mark McKenzie, Walker Zimmerman Just missed out: Cameron Carter-Vickers, Miles Robinson, Joe Scally, John Tolkin, Auston Trusty When the 2022 World Cup ended, few expected then-35-year-old Ream to continue with the USMNT. Almost three years later, nobody else has beaten out the wily left-footed center back for the open spot next to the rock-solid Richards, who was a revelation for the USMNT at the Gold Cup. That could still happen between now and next summer. As it stands, though, the job belongs to Ream, who served as Poch's captain throughout the regional championship. Dest and Jedi both missed the Gold Cup while recovering from injury but are clear locks at fullback if healthy. Freeman and Arfsten emerged this summer as their likely understudies a year from now. Holding midfielders (Photo by) Starters: Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie Backups: Johnny Cardoso, Sebastian Berhalter, Yunus Musah, Tanner Tessmann Just missed out: Gianluca Busio, Luca de la Torre, Aidan Morris For the U.S. to succeed on home soil, they'll need Adams and McKennie on the field. Poch could even reunite those two with Musah, who together formed the impressive "MMA" midfield that shut down pre-tournament favorite England at Qatar 2022. Berhalter is the biggest mover behind them, and the son of former USMNT Gregg Berhalter's accuracy on set-pieces gives him an advantage over the more experienced De la Torre. Lyon's Tessmann should return after being left home for the Gold Cup. Meantime, Cardoso remains an enigma at the international level. An ankle injury limited the 23-year-old box-to-box type to just 10 Gold Cup minutes, but it didn't prevent Spanish titans Atlético Madrid from dropping a $35 million transfer fee on him last week. Attacking midfielders (Photo by) Starter: Malik Tillman Backup: Diego Luna Just missed out: Jack McGlynn, Gio Reyna With three goals in six games, Luna got much of the buzz at the Gold Cup. Not only did Tillman match that production, his quality, maturity and toughness were on display all tournament. There's no reason to think that the 23-year-old won't take that confidence into the European season with new club Bayer Leverkusen, which Tillman joined last week following back-to-back titles (and UEFA Champions League knockout stage appearances) with Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven. Then there's Reyna. The oft-injured playmaker seems as far away from the USMNT as ever after logging only 12 minutes off the bench during Borussia Dortmund's run at the FIFA Club World Cup. He's made just one cameo under Poch. Multiple European reports have the 22-year-old headed to Italy's Parma, which could be an ideal fit. As it stands today, however, it's obvious that Reyna is on the outside looking in. Wingers (Photo by Giuseppe Cottini/AC Milan via Getty Images) Starters: Tim Weah, Christian Pulisic Backups: Brenden Aaronson, Haji Wright Just missed out: Paxten Aaronson, Damion Downs, Quinn Sullivan Even if Pochettino elects not to summon Pulisic for the September friendlies against Japan and South Korea after Pulisic skipped the Gold Cup, the coach and his most irreplaceable player need each other. They'll find a way to get onto the same page in the lead-in to the World Cup, where Pulisic will be front and center for the USMNT. But the classy, fleet-footed Weah is almost as important on the other side, where he can stretch defenses and open up space for teammates. As Poch's Gold Cup selections showed, there is a dearth of true wingers in the American player pool after Pulisic and Weah. Wright would've gotten more of a look but left camp with an Achilles problem after scoring in the group stage opener. Still, he's performed under Poch and can also play as a center forward. And while Aaronson doesn't seem to be the coach's cup of tea, there isn't an obvious alternative. While Downs saw more time off the bench in the knockout stage, most of those minutes came in a central role. Striker (Photo by Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) Starter: Ricardo Pepi Backups: Folarin Balogun, Josh Sargent Just missed out: Patrick Agyemang, Brian White Not only is Pepi fully healthy again following surgery to repair a torn meniscus he suffered after scoring the game-winning goal over Liverpool in a Champions League match last January, he enters the new campaign as PSV's first choice striker following the departure of club legend Luuk de Jong. That's huge for the 22-year-old Texan. Balogun should also be fit after an injury-plagued 2024-25; an ankle issue forced the Monaco man out of Gold Cup consideration. It's an open race between those two — one Agyemang has been leading with Sargent overlooked by Poch this summer. But projecting out 10 months, Sargent might have the advantage. Word is he's returning to the German Bundesliga with Wolfsburg, which would be the perfect step up for a player who was the best at his position in England's second tier Championship last season. Either way, Agyemang's own move comes with significant risk. The rangy (6-foot-4) 24-year-old just left MLS's Charlotte for Derby County — a club that finished 19th in the Championship last term and scored just 48 goals in 46 games — and will surely need time to settle on and off the field. Doug McIntyre is a soccer reporter for FOX Sports who has covered United States men's and women's national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him @ ByDougMcIntyre . share
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
"Just my opinion" — McKennie responds to Donovan criticism of USMNT stars
Weston McKennie has hit back at USMNT legend Landon Donovan after the retired forward criticized the national team absentees at the upcoming Concacaf Gold Cup. Star players such as Christian Pulisic, Sergiño Dest, Antonee Robinson, Timothy Weah, and McKennie will all be absent from the squad for the tournament this June. Advertisement 'This is what it means to represent your country," Donovan said over the weekend. "If you don't want to take it seriously as a professional soccer player and someone who gets the opportunity to wear the jersey, then don't come in." While the players are missing for a variety of reasons, including injury or Club World Cup campaigns, Weston McKennie felt Donovan's comments were wide of the mark. 'Obviously, none of us take for granted playing for the national team. None of us want to lose games," McKennie said. 'All of us want to compete. And for me, it's a little bit, I won't say sad, but as a former national team player, I think as a national team player pool – previous, present – I think it's more about trying to build or even say something like that to a person directly rather than putting it out there.' Advertisement Most notably, McKennie pointed out that past USMNT sides have failed to show up in big moments, specifically in 2017 when the Stars and Stripes failed to qualify for the World Cup in Russia. 'That's just my opinion because we've all been through those moments, even when comments about us losing the Nations League were made by many players from before, but they've had the same thing on a bigger stage with not qualifying for the World Cup.' The United States will kick off their Gold Cup campaign on June 15 against Trinidad and Tobago. 📸 Hector Vivas - 2024 Getty Images
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clint Dempsey says Gold Cup proved USMNT fans should be excited for 2026 World Cup
Former USMNT player Clint Dempsey urges fans to get excited after the team's strong Gold Cup showing.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Clint Dempsey on Gold Cup standouts who could crack USMNT's starting 11 for 2026 World Cup
Former USMNT player Clint Dempsey on Coach Pochettino's first year as head coach and how he's looking to set the starting 11 for the 2026 World Cup.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Sport
- Fox News
U.S. Men's Striker Josh Sargent Reportedly Nears Move To German Club Wolfsburg
United States men's national team striker Josh Sargent is reportedly on the verge of a move to German Bundesliga club Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg is nearing a transfer fee with Sargent's current club Norwich City worth around $24 million, according to ESPN. It would mark a return to Germany for the 25-year-old St. Louis native, who played for Werder Bremen before moving to Norwich in 2021. Sargent, who has five goals in 28 appearances for the USMNT, remains among the candidates for a spot on the World Cup roster in 2026. Sargent's most recent appearance for the USMNT in March during the Nations League semifinal game against Panama. In order to remain in the mix for Mauricio Pochettino's squad for 2026, Sargent will need to keep producing at the club level. He has done a solid job at Norwich, where he has scored 46 goals in 124 league matches. He joined Norwich when the club was in the Premier League in the 2021-22 season and has spent the past three campaigns in England's second tier, where he was top scorer for Norwich in both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. Sargent is among several U.S. stars moving clubs across Europe. Already this summer, Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven to Bayer Leverkusen), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis to Atletico Madrid), and Nathaniel Downs (FC Koln to Southampton) have made prominent moves. Patrick Agyemang also joined English club Derby County from MLS club Charlotte FC. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
