No one outside Mauricio Pochettino’s inner circle knows for sure who he is naming to the U.S. World Cup squad next week. Heck, Pochettino himself might remain undecided on a couple slots ahead of the May 26 announcement in New York.
Nevertheless, we all have a very good idea which players will form the foundation of a 26-man roster that will represent the country at this summer’s soccer festival across North America.
Advertisement
Three weeks ago, Yahoo Sports ranked the players irrespective of position by their importance to the team and probability of making the final cut. Today, we break things down with sure bets by position, with the disclaimer that injuries — both lingering and 11th-hour — could alter the equation.
Play 2026 Soccer Pick ‘Em with FOX One and make your picks for the world’s biggest soccer tournament
Goalkeepers
Matt Freese and Matt Turner have been Pochettino’s only starters the past 14 months, and they will remain atop the depth chart heading into the World Cup.
Freese — who made four saves in New York City’s 1-1 draw with Red Bull New York on Saturday — started 12 consecutive matches to end the 2025 schedule before yielding to Turner for the Belgium wreck two months ago. Freese was back in net a few days later against Portugal.
Matt Freese appears to be Mauricio Pochettino’s No. 1 choice in net.
(Shaun Clark/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
Turner has performed well for New England, including a six-save effort vs. Minnesota on Saturday, and does bring World Cup experience from 2022 in Qatar. A late bloomer on the national scene, Freese has never played in world competition at any level but will almost certainly arrive at training camp as the frontrunner.
Advertisement
Others: Chicago’s Chris Brady, who earned his sixth clean sheet in 13 matches Saturday, appears to have the inside track for the No. 3 role despite no senior matches, but Columbus’ Patrick Schulte has three caps and started at the 2024 Olympics, while Cincinnati’s Roman Celentano has remained in the mix.
Center Backs
As one of Pochettino’s most important players, anchoring an otherwise unsettled backline, Crystal Palace’s Chris Richards is a certainty. Amid a congested domestic and international stretch, he came off the bench Sunday for his second sub appearance in five outings. To the horror of USMNT fans, Richards twisted his ankle in a late collision during the 2-2 draw against Brentford. While Richards was seen visibly struggling post-match, manager Oliver Glasner is cautiously optimistic about a potential return by midweek.
Palace will close the Premier League season next Sunday at home against first-place Arsenal before facing Spain’s Rayo Vallecano in the UEFA Conference League final May 27 in Leipzig, Germany. Consequently, Richards will report late to U.S. camp in the Atlanta area.
Advertisement
Although 38-year-old Tim Ream has not been at his best, Pochettino values leadership and experience. Whether the Charlotte FC man starts every group match is another matter. Ream didn’t play this weekend for load management purposes, but is expected to return next weekend.
In his second season in Glasgow, Auston Trusty (24 starts) helped Celtic win its fifth consecutive Scottish league trophy with a must-win, 3-1 comeback victory over Hearts. Next comes the FA Cup final vs. second-flight Dunfermline on Saturday. He has started at least once in each of the past two U.S. camps.
Mark McKenzie has started almost every Toulouse match for which he has been available and made the U.S. lineup in two of the past three matches. He was in Toulouse’s lineup Sunday at Nantes when the match was abandoned because of a pitch invasion.
Others: If Pochettino selects a fifth center back, does he go with Cincinnati’s Miles Robinson or perhaps Vancouver’s Tristan Blackmon? Noahkai Banks, a dual national who hasn’t played much for Augsburg this spring, all but ended his chances by not committing to the U.S. before the March window.
Advertisement
Fullbacks/Wing Backs
Five slots seem set: World Cup incumbents Antonee Robinson, Sergiño Dest and Tim Weah, plus 2025 breakthrough prospects Alex Freeman and Max Arfsten.
Robinson has shaken off injury and fitness concerns with three consecutive 90-minute performances at left back for Fulham. On Sunday, he scored his first Premier League goal over five seasons by converting a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time of a 1-1 draw at Wolverhampton.
Two weeks after returning from a two-month injury absence, Dest on Sunday went 90 minutes for the first time since March 3 as PSV Eindhoven capped its championship season with a 5-1 blitz of Twente. Usually a right back, Dest has started on the left the last two weeks — adding comfort for Pochettino, should Robinson face additional issues.
Advertisement
Weah, a 2022 World Cup goal-scorer who returned to Olympique Marseille’s lineup Sunday after sitting out a game with an injury, could end up serving multiple roles this summer: right back, midfielder or forward. At OM, he typically plays back.
After starting three of Villarreal’s previous four matches on the right corner, Freeman did not play in the 2-0 loss at Rayo Vallecano. His last opportunity comes next Sunday vs. Atlético Madrid.
Arfsten, who is more a wing than a defender for Columbus, provides cover for Pochettino on the left. He has four goals and four assists this MLS season.
Others: Is there room for Joe Scally, a versatile full-time starter for Mönchengladbach?
Advertisement
Defensive Midfielders
Because of injuries and lineup decisions, Tyler Adams has started just four times in 2026 for Bournemouth. But he is an integral part of a Premier League club pushing for a Europa League — or maybe a Champions League — berth next season. And his value to the U.S. is undeniable.
Bournemouth was off this weekend ahead of Tuesday’s home date with Manchester City and Sunday’s finale at Nottingham Forest.
Who would start alongside Adams? Atlético Madrid’s Johnny Cardoso and Olympique Lyonnais’ Tanner Tessmann were top candidates, but Cardoso is out of the picture after undergoing ankle surgery last week and Tessmann’s status is unclear after his French club shut him down May 8 because of a muscle strain.
Advertisement
That leaves Middlesbrough’s Aidan Morris and Seattle’s Cristian Roldan. Morris was a full-time starter for second-flight side that fell one match short of the promotion playoff final. Pochettino is enamored with Roldan’s leadership, experience and bite. (He also had a two-goal game for the Sounders recently.)
Attacking Midfielders
We’re going to stick Christian Pulisic in this category, though he could play as a second forward or wing. The face of the U.S. program has not scored for AC Milan since December, but on Sunday, he returned from a one-game injury absence to set up a goal in the 2-1 victory at Genoa.
Advertisement
Weston McKennie is another player who could end up in any of several roles, but there’s a good chance he partners with Pulisic behind the striker. With one Juventus match left, he has appeared in 47 matches across all competitions (43 starts).
Malik Tillman was in Bayer Leverkusen’s lineup Saturday, his first start since the March international window. He finished the Bundesliga campaign with six goals in 29 matches (but just 18 starts).
Others: Here’s where things get interesting, with Brenden Aaronson, Diego Luna, Gio Reyna, Sebastian Berhalter and maybe even Jack McGlynn in contention. Not everyone is going to make the cut and no one is a lock.
Aaronson has started 29 Premier League matches for Leeds but barely featured in the last U.S. window. Luna battled a knee injury early in Real Salt Lake’s season and, after four goals in seven matches, sat out Saturday with muscle tightness. Reyna’s last Mönchengladbach start was five months ago.
Advertisement
Berhalter is enjoying a terrific season for Vancouver, with six goals and seven assists in 13 matches, including a two-goal performance Wednesday. McGlynn, who, because of injuries, hasn’t been in U.S. camp since September, has come on strong for Houston.
Two others to consider, though both are wingers, not midfielders, and are competing with the aforementioned for roster spots: Club América’s Alex Zendejas, who was among Liga MX’s best players, and Real Salt Lake’s Zavier Gozo, a dazzling 19-year-old with six goals and four assists who has gained a lot of buzz from MLS fans and media but has never even been in a U.S. senior camp.
Strikers
We have saved the easiest position for last.
Advertisement
Undeniably Pochettino’s first-choice striker, Monaco’s Folarin Balogun finished with 19 goals in 43 appearances across all competitions. His 13 Ligue 1 goals ranked fourth.
Ricardo Pepi and Haji Wright also enjoyed terrific campaigns to position themselves for playing time this summer.
Pepi converted a late penalty kick Sunday to finish with 19 goals in just 33 matches and 18 starts across all competitions. His 13 league goals were tied for third.
Wright notched 18 goals in 43 games across all competitions for Coventry City, which won the English Championship and returned to the Premier League for the first time in 25 years. His 17 league goals were tied for second.
Read the full article here