Pre-match: 2026 World Cup Roster

Sounds like Achilles. Not good.

 

Agyemang... sigh.

 

Morris(acl), Agyemang(achilles), and Dike(achilles) all suffered major injuries of the non-contact variety within a year of transferring to or going on loan to the C'ship. Perhaps the combo of no offseason break, the long C'ship season, and their physiques was a factor.

 

Achilles injuries are on the rise in sports. Little tendon involved in every movement on increasingly bigger humans.

Injuries are going to happen. Its just part of the deal. For every national team............................

From a WC squad perspective, I've only had three center forwards for some time. If Pat is out, it just solidifies Wright.

Only three center forwards allows room for all of Reyna, Berhalter, and Scally on my roster. I don't have to choose. [The injury to Dest may have solidfied the case for Scally anyway.] Reyna's kind of hanging on. I kind of have him, but am totally on the fence about it. With Scally moving more solidly in, Gio is now one of my last two making it.

If Poch decided at the last camp that Gio just isn't fit enough, I can see him grabbing Zendejas.

 

I was thinking about this at lunch.
Since the Gold Cup, we've had four camps. At none of those camps have we had four center forwards.

I just don't see a lot of rationale for thinking Poch is going to take four center forwards. The Agyemang injury solidifies the position of Pepi, Wright, and Balogun. Another injury (knock on wood) and then we have to consider others.

September
Balogun
Downs
Sargent

October
Agyemang
Balogun
Wright

November
Balogun
Pepi
Wright

March
Agyameng
Balogun
Pepi

 

What a tragedy for Large Patrick. I love that guy and he was crucial to our tactical flexibility. He would have made a big play or two this Summer. Cory Gibbs and Chris Armas are players who come to mind who had this misfortune at this kind of career inflection point. Just very sad and we all wish him the best.

I’m relieved for Pepi and honestly I want him there. He is a goal scorer with a permanent chip on his shoulder. So much to prove, everything in front of him.

 

Same, I expect it to be 3. I don't think there's a 4th guy and the guys in contention would be pretty ridiculous options if chosen over depth at other positions. We just need to get to June with all 3 of them still healthy (knock on wood).

 

I always got the sense that people were naming 4 FWs because they found it too difficult to choose between the options we have. That's probably not an issue now.

4 FWs (or more) made sense with the 2 CF formations we used to play in past World Cups. But Poch has never started 2 CF together for the US. With Balogun expected to start more often than not, I don't really think you need 3 separate backups to give you injury cover or to give you sufficient tactical options off the bench.

 

And, at the end of the day, if you needed a fourth ... would you rather just put one of our wingers/CAMs up there or say ... Josh Sargent or Brian White?

Give me striker Weston or Tillman or Weah over that.

 

If there's another injury, then Sargent and Brian White re-enter the picture. But as it stands, it's quite obvious that it's going to be Balogun, Pepi, and Wright. It's probably the most clearly obvious position from a roster decision standpoint on the team. There's very little ambiguity there, now that Agyemang has been injured out of the running.

I'm disappointed because Big Pat gave Poch the possibility of a completely different sub-on option, and he was in form. But Wright put two good ones past one of our WC opponents this fall. He (or, for the sake of argument, Pepi) might be the best third-choice forward our team has ever had going into the World Cup.

 

Feel really bad for Big Pat. I can't pretend I wasn't critical. I was/am and don't rate him at the international level but still he's a fellow human, fellow American and YA and I feel sad for him. It's a terrible thing.

Hopefully Balogun/Pepi stay fit or things start to look dicey.

 

it's official:
Patrick Agyemang to miss World Cup with Achilles injury | Stars and Stripes FC

 

playing games on a Friday and then on a Monday...totally ridiculous

 

Having watched Pepi play at PSV, if you are relying on him scoring this summer...you had better think again.

 

Sucks for Big Pat. Playing well for Derby, 10 goals I think. They are sniffing a playoff place. And he just scored in the last USMNT window.

Hope he can recover fully.

I'd have taken 4 CFs to the WC. But this means another spot is open. CAM/AM (Reyna, Zendejas, Luna), CM (Berhalter, Morris, Johnny, Roldan), or may even CB/FB (Scally, Zimmerman).

My $0.02:

GK (3): Freese; Turner, Schulte
FB (4): Jedi, Dest, Freeman, Arfsten
CB: (5): Richards, Ream; McKenzie, Robinson, Zimmerman
CM (5): Adams, Tillman; Morris, Berhalter, Roldan
AM/CAM/WF (3): McKennie, Zendejas
WF (3): Pulisic, Weah, B. Aaronson
CF (3): Balogun; Pepi, Wright

Poch will take:
1) Trusty over Zimmerman
2) Tessman over 1 of the CMs. Morris/Roldan/Berhalter
3) Will play Tillman more advanced.
4) Will take Reyna or Luna over Zendejas
5) Maybe a different 3rd GK

 

Is Wright healthy?

 

Is Dest going to be healthy?

 

Same, I didn't buy it at all. Our strikers regularly would bag tons of goals, and I was exceedingly disappointed in his play in July/August until I learned that he basically needed surgery the whole time and was kind of the anti-regular (didn't beg off summer role, and instead played through the pain), and even w/that knowledge, the lack of touch and ball control skill is quite stark. I didn't really see it beyond the "presence" and different look piece, and that wasn't enough for me at all, and I was deeply alarmed at the potential delusional reality of Agyemang being ahead of Pepi potentially on the depth chart but I also was resigned to him going, and I can totally understand how brutal it must be to be two months away from playing in a WC a few years away from playing obscure college soccer. Not fair, at all, but fair's got nothing to do it with it (Unforgiven go to quote). Poor guy, just brutal.

 

The "word" seems to be he will be.

I am extremely skeptical.

 

Seems more likely to be a situation where, he's not match fit, but he's healthy and trying to ramp up. He sounded like he thought he'd be good to go by mid to late april, I imagine more like late april to may mid.

 

Haji's groin issue is supposed to be minor.
I'm skeptical anyway. A player whose team is gunning for promotion pulled out of an international window.

In the immortal words of Frank Lampard: “Haji’s got a bit of a sensation in his groin so we’ll have to check that out,”

You never know with muscle injuries, but its supposed to be minor.

I do expect him to take a 3rd if there's another injury.

Sargent has a lot riding on getting hot in MLS and going on a run. It could still happen for him. He had a goal and an assist this week for Toronto. I don't think any of us currently have him on our roster, but he'd be if more injuries are encountered.

White is white. While everyone fawns over younger players, all that guy does is go out and score. He was the leading USMNT-eligible goalscorer in MLS in 2025 and has started the 2026 season with 5 goals in 6 games. He has 7 caps under Pochettino. He's not just been a camp cupcake darling.

Josh Sargent, Brian White rise up as leading candidates to replace injured Agyemang - SBI Soccer

 

It'll definitely be those 3 at this point assuming they're all healthy, I think people are just speculating on who would be next up if one of them went down.

 

With PSV clinching the title, Pepi is an interesting question.

.........................we want him to stay fit, but also don't want him to get injured.

Would we rather they just sit him??????

[We don't talk enough about the job Earnie Stewart has done at PSV.]

Monaco and Balogun are playing for a lot. Fighting for the Champions League. With his form, they're going to ride him until he drops.

 

Tillman missed the Sept camp because he had just returned from injury which had caused him to miss the start of the BuLi season.

He was back in the October camp and started vs Ecuador but got injured in training before the Australia match, got sent home early and missed a couple of weeks at Leverkusen.

Was back in November, came on for Reyna in the first match v Paraguay and started the next v Uruguay.

Came back this window and started both matches.

Tillman is central to almost everything Poch is trying to do. He leads the 4-4-2 press next to the striker and we saw in this camp a new set where he or Pulisic drives hard from high positions to receive the ball an one touch passes it wide to drive a fast, aggressive attack. We also saw him this window more involved in dropping deep to help the midfield in buildup.

He is one of the first names on Poch's lineup, that I have 100% confidence in.

 

He was not in camp in November. You're thinking of his brother.