Mauricio Pochettino’s U.S. men’s national team roster could look a lot different in the coming months, but for now he’s sticking with the familiar faces in the player pool.
Pochettino revealed his first roster as USMNT head coach on Wednesday heading into October friendlies against Panama and Mexico. The Argentine manager selected 25 players which featured usual faces such as Christian Pulisic, Yunus Musah, Antonee Robinson, and Ricardo Pepi.
However, the continued injury absences of Sergino Dest and Tyler Adams were joined by recent absentees Chris Richards, Gio Reyna and Cameron Carter-Vickers, who have also dealt with recent knocks of their own.
Pochettino doesn’t have his strongest USMNT roster yet and might not for some time, but does expect things to change once everyone is healthy and injury-free.
“[I trust] the opinion and all the information that we received from the national team, that is why you are going to see a very similar roster from [the] last camp,” said Pochettino on Wednesday in a conference call with media.
“Maybe [they’re] not now in the roster,” said Pochettino when asked about the current absentees. “But for sure they’re going to be in the roster in the future.”
One position that will be up for grabs is the starting goalkeeper role. Matt Turner and Ethan Horvath have regularly been the top-two options for the USMNT, but both have struggled with consistent playing time at club level.
Zack Steffen, who formerly was the USMNT’s No. 1, is back in his first camp since 2023, and is joined by rising MLS talent Patrick Schulte. Schulte started in both of the USMNT’s matches last September after earning his senior debut in January under Gregg Berhalter.
While Turner and Horvath have been at the forefront of the No. 1 job over the last few years, the return of Steffen and the growth of Schulte could lead to a major change in between the posts.
“We know him, and I think he…
Source link : https://sbisoccer.com/2024/10/mauricio-pochettino-sticking-with-familiar-faces-in-first-usmnt-roster
Author : Larry Henry Jr
Publish date : 2024-10-02 22:26:49
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