Mauricio Pochettino has unveiled the latest United States men's national team roster, featuring several young players who could debut for the senior squad. Cavan Sullivan, at just 16 years old, is set to make his USMNT debut and would become the fourth-youngest player in history if he plays. The roster includes 13 potential debuts, with nine veteran players having over 30 caps each. Notable absences include Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie due to poor form or injury, highlighting Pochettino's focus on youth development ahead of the upcoming matches against Peru and Chile in September/October.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-20,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
It was reasonable to expect that Mauricio Pochettino’s first United States squad after this summer’s World Cup would turn the page for a new cycle.
asserted
squad → expect → cycle
Instead, given the youthfulness of his selections, even a fast-forward reference feels like too dated a reference.
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reference → give → reference
Cavan Sullivan is poised to make his US senior debut, with the 16-year-old chosen for Pochettino’s 28-man squad for the September/October window.
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old → poise → window
Sullivan is one of 13 players who could debut for the national team in the coming weeks, with four friendlies to be played across the country.
uncertain
who → debut → country
Should he see the field, Sullivan would become the fourth-youngest player to represent the US, a record still held by Freddy Adu.
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Sullivan → see → Adu
Several members of the World Cup squad have been omitted to make way for the youth movement.
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members → omit → movement
Christian Pulisic misses out after a slow start to his season with Milan, where he has been a bench option for Ruben Amorim.
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he → miss → Amorim
Weston McKennie is also absent, having missed most of Juventus’s young season with muscle fatigue.
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McKennie → miss → fatigue
Folarin Balogun misses out too, probably due to a lack of minutes after his failed transfer to Everton.
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Balogun → miss → Everton
In total, nine selections enter this window with at least 30 senior caps: defenders Chris Richards, Miles Robinson, Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest; midfielders Tyler Adams, Yunus Musah, Malik Tillman and Gio Reyna; and striker Ricardo Pepi.
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selections → enter → caps
Eight of those players was part of Pochettino’s 2026 World Cup squad, while Musah has been called up for the first time since before the 2025 Gold Cup.
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Musah → call → Cup
Other returnees from the World Cup include Matt Freese, Chris Brady, Alex Freeman, Auston Trusty, and Sebastian Berhalter.
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returnees → include → Freese
Hello, Cavan
Sullivan has been in blistering form with Philadelphia, earning a place in interim coach Ryan Richter’s lineup after MLS’s World Cup break.
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Sullivan → earn → break
The Union academy product has six goals and 11 assists in 1,368 league minutes this year, stoking incredible hype.
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product → have → hype
Sullivan turns 17 on 28 September, two days after the United States’ first friendly (against Peru) and on the eve of their second (against Chile).
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Sullivan → turn → Chile
He’s joined by a pair of club teammates for their shared first camp, defenders Neil Pierre and Frankie Westfield.
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He → join → camp
Fresh faces
Pochettino has picked several more of the nation’s most promising prospects.
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Pochettino → pick → prospects
Zavier Gozo could debut after leaving boyhood Real Salt Lake for Crystal Palace this summer, while 18-year-old Peyton Miller – a possible future left-back currently playing right wing in New England – is also on the squad.
uncertain
Miller → debut → squad
Two uncapped goalkeepers join Matt Freese and Chris Brady: 20-year-old Diego Kochen, a Barcelona product earning starts on loan at Lyngby, and 25-year-old Brian Schwake, the backstop of runaway MLS favorite Nashville SC.
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goalkeepers → join → SC
Polish-American dual national striker Julian Hall is MLS’s top-scoring teenager with nine goals and his off-ball movement could make him a factor to score immediately.
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him → score → ball
Adri Mehmeti is another regular in Michael Bradley’s lineups in New Jersey; a 17-year-old midfield anchor who’s already very comfortable shepherding sequences of sustained possession with recirculation and upfield initiative alike.
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who → ’ → recirculation
Other first-time selections come as a greater surprise, though few knew how wholesale of changes Pochettino would make from this summer’s 26-man roster.
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Pochettino → come → roster
Justin Ellis is a 19-year-old attacker who has thrived operating off of new Orlando teammate Antoine Griezmann.
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who → thrive → Griezmann
Borussia Dortmund product Mathis Albert has often split billing with Sullivan as this US generation’s top prospects, but still hasn’t become a regular with the German club’s reserve team.
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Albert → split → team
Brooklyn Raines, a 21-year-old midfielder for New England, could become the third US international to hail from Liberia.
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Raines → become → Liberia
Doc Lawson became the first with his sole USMNT cap in 1979, while Darlington Nagbe represented the U.S. on 25 occasions.
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Nagbe → become → occasions
Looking to LA 2028
The introduction of so many fresh faces is also being done with an eye towards the 2028 Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles.
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which → look → Angeles
Steve Cherundolo, who earned 87 caps with the US before winning MLS Cup as Los Angeles FC manager, will lead the U-23 team that summer.
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who → earn → team
While Olympic rules allow teams to field three players above the age limit at the tournament, having a bevy of dependable young options affords a coach the chance to use those “over-age” players to maximize the team’s potential rather than filling gaps, as Marko Mitrovic had to do in 2024 by using two of his three over-age picks on center-backs.
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Mitrovic → allow → backs
The Aporia
