Youngest Players to make 2026 WC Roster predictions contest

It's Cole Campbell

 

SD didn't buy him. The kid that is moving up in status is Brooklyn Raines

 

Late to the party, so I won’t make any guesses. I will say that Poch should …

1) Take Kochen. Of that there is no doubt.

2) Leave room for a ‘late arrival,’ a young player he has so far overlooked. But almost certainly he won’t.

 

I just don't get the sense that Poch is the kind of manager who is going to take Kochen.

Poch's contract runs out after this World Cup, and there's no sign that he's wanting to stay on longer than that.

Poch isn't thinking about the future in any way, shape, or form. Its who can help him win NOW. That's it. Right now. I don't see him using slots 25, 26, etc. to give elite young players the experience of being in the group. Those slots are more likely to go in the direction of trusted veterans.

Kochen hasn't played a game at a level higher than the Spanish 4th division this season. He doesn't fit that category of player that can help right now. Our 3rd keeper will be one we're comfortable using at a World Cup level in case of emergency. A guy who's good in the locker room and who wouldn't pee his pants if we're forced to use him in a Round of 16 match against Belgium.

Banks is the one. Can he help RIGHT NOW, particularly with CCV's injury? That case can be made.

He's the only thread-eligible player that's gotten a callup of late and is the one with a platform in club soccer to make his case. I have my doubts based on the fact that he's still uncapped and wasn't at our November camp. But he's at a position of need and is making his case.

Cremaschi may start getting into more matches in Serie A, but central midfield is far too crowded at the moment. He's the only 05 with a hint of a shot. I just don't see it.

We're not in expanding the pool mode any more. Our remaining camps are "gelling the squad" camps. We're not throwing out newbies against Portugal and Belgium in March. Those are games you schedule to test the "A" team, and make last minute squad refinements around the edges. If Poch and the USMNT staff was interested in seeing/testing the Brooklyn Raines category of young player, then they wouldn't have cancelled January camp.

 

Listen to you, you’re suggesting a bunch of mediocrity who has proven nothing at any high level is above Banks just out of principle.

What? why?

Outside of Richards, McKenzie, and Ream, I don’t even begin to understand the argument. I’m not even saying those three all should be ahead of him (Ream definitely shouldn’t), but the argument is somewhat there.

What in the world have we seen from Robinson, Blackmon, Trusty, etc to be ahead of Banks?

 

I think its a question of what WE think of the player versus reading the Pochettino tea leaves.

Nothing in Pochettino's actions suggestions Banks is in the WC squad. If he's in the March camp over the Blackmon, Trusty types, then that's a great sign.

This is what Poch said before Noahkai's first camp with the USMNT.
USMNT coach Pochettino tips Noahkai Banks for big things

"I saw him playing in Germany, and he's a massive talent," the coach said. "You never know how he can explode — maybe at the end of the season he can be the best center back in Europe or in Germany."

But then you temper that with the fact that he didn't actually use him for those September games. In fact, he wasn't on the bench against South Korea. Then he didn't call him up for the October and November camps. So what are we to make of that? I don't know. Do we think POchettino is going to bring Banks to the World Cup when he's never actually used him in a game?

 

Out of principle? I don't even know what that means.

No. I'm stating what seems to be the coach's actual depth chart as of now.

Banks was called into September camp, was seen by Pochettino, and didn't play while Tristan Blackmon, Tim Ream and Chris Richards did. Then he wasn't called in for October or November rosters either. And while there are guys left home for non-depth chart reasons, and perhaps he was one ... there's no indication Banks is very far up the depth chart right now.

Now, perhaps Banks was not ready to fully commit to the US. That's a possibility. But it's also fairly possible that Poch saw him and deemed him not ready at the moment.

I don't really care that Banks has played in the Bundesliga. I do care how Banks has played in the Bundesliga, though at a level that's more detailed and accurate than fotmob says X. After some rough starts, I've heard very little, which is actually a good thing.

But it's very clear to me that merely playing in a league does not have the predictive power that people think.

Two of the biggest culprits to the US not qualifying in 2018 were horror show performances by two of our highest status players -- John Brooks and Geoff Cameron.

Then Brooks turned around and tried to repeat it in the 2022 cycle, costing us two points and trying to cost us more with shit play in the first window. He was rightfully never called in again, despite being one of the highest paid CBs in the Bundesliga.

Walker Zimmerman and Miles Robinson got us to the World Cup, and they were exponentially better than a dude who gave up two goals on amateur level mistakes and a lack of hustle in 135 minutes.

Club play is a valuable input and a necessary one, but it's not the end all, be all. I have no idea how many times we need to see it not translate at a 1:1 level before people stop acting like it does and should override all other considerations.

Miles and Trusty have played well for the US. Banks has yet to play. That's what we've seen from them. Agree on Blackmon, but my commentary there was that Poch could have played Banks in that window and did not.

As for Banks...

... he's on my list of 8 because he's young, high potential, and playing. Much like I thought with Freeman earlier in the year, he looks like a dude who very well may make a leap this year. And if so, there's a decent to good chance he makes the roster, depending on the leap.

But there's also exactly one window left for him to make an impact unless Poch changes his mind before about not having cuts in June. So he needs to (a) actually choose the United States (b) make that impression in club and then (c) makes that impression likely in March because I just don't think a coach who gushes over the movie Miracle is making selections based on potential or even current talent.

Add in that defense is often well served by playing guys who have played together quite a bit, and I think acting like throwing Banks into games is some kind of no-brainer ignores the actual playing part of soccer.

Basically every player we've introduced to the defense has shit the bed in the first game or two they've played for the US - Freeman, Scally, Arfsten, Trusty, McKenzie, Blackmon -- heck Richards was super disappointing if you remember back. He didn't really hit the Richards people talk about right now until this year's Gold Cup!

I hope he picks the US and I hope he makes the roster, especially if we go to 6 CBs. Frankly, at that point, we're not playing that deep, and no, I don't need Blackmon on the roster. I don't want anyone to get hurt, but if someone does, I hope he's #6 right now at minimum.

But I also understand why, if we're only at 5, Pochettino would choose to select guys who have played for us, and why he'd select based on what he's seen at national team camps.

We've seen a recent turnaround in team results driven in part by intensity, focus and commitment to the national team. Suddenly changing criteria for the World Cup would be a massive negative to team chemistry and ignore what's working.

Perhaps Banks gets selected on those criteria. Perhaps he doesn't. It's not as simple as "he's playing in the Bundesliga."

---------------

I'd love to see a non-American scouting report on him. I can see the physical tools and I can read the stats (cautious passer for the Bundesliga; a bit too many tackles but maybe that's how Augsburg plays; Not great in the air for 6'4" but that's not shocking at his age).

I read some of the US scouting reports on him and it seem people are comparing him to other youth US CBs. That's great for long term potential or a youth team, but that's not the comparison we have here.

 

The other way to look at is that Pochettino isn’t trying to hand anything to Banks. He’s making him work hard for it. He called him into a camp because he deserved it and didn’t play him because he thought others were ahead of him to play in those games. Maybe he thought others slightly edged him to make the roster the following camp.

On the other hand, it’ll be quite hard over the course of a full season to keep a Bundesliga starter who is putting up positive results out of the squad when we have very few CB’s of any real quality.

Let’s see where things are at in March. I suspect he’ll be in that squad. Besides, if the player earns it and the coach decides against it, what can we do? I’d like what’s logical to line up with what the coach thinks, but we don’t control that. Banks is on course to earn a WC spot, if he continues to play regularly for Augsburg. I think the discussions here tend to be what makes sense, not can we read the coach’s mind?

 

As much as I like Banks, starter for Augsburg doesn't mean clearly better than an MLS player. It's been a decade since they finished better than 11th out of 18. Since he's not playing for a top contender it's not out of the question that there are other players doing better in USMNT training than him. He'll just have to prove it.

 

He may not be playing on a big team, but he is playing against better teams than any MLS teams. That has to count for something.

 

I'm totally with you.

We're all making assumptions here. Cuz there is very little actual evidence one way or the other.

We're only ~6 months from squad selection, and Noahkai Banks is uncapped. That is the fact. Not only is he uncapped, he's only been on the bench for the USMNT once.

I would assume (and it is an assumption) that if Pochettino was serious about Banks, he would have called him up in October and November. Challenged him with game time. For the November window CCV was injured and Richards wasn't available. Instead of Banks, Pochettino turned to Trusty and Sean Zawadski (who spent the majority of the year playing CB for Columbus). So what does that tell us? I don't know.

I'm totally with you. Banks is earning the opportunity with his play. But Pochettino hasn't been rewarding him for it. So what do we make of that. That he evvaluated him in September and decided that he's not ready???? At some point, his lack of caps matters. At some point, there isn't time left to vet him. Are we really going to start Banks against Belgium or Portugal in March? The time to use him was against a Paraguay or Ecuador.

Its why I'm saying that if I was forced to put money on the youngest player to make the roster, I'm going with Freeman.

 

I have swung around on this, today my gut says Banks will probably just barely sneak on the roster. CCV helps but also Banks keeps starting in the Bundesliga. I would literally not bet a dollar either way though. But I would say I don’t feel like any other young player is even remotely close. No other 06s, no 05s, then probably only Freeman as an 04. That’s not me saying how I think it should be, it’s how I think it will be.

 

I thought Banks was put in the US U20 WC team, and at the last minute was called back by his club team.
The kid has a very high ceiling.

 

Of course it does. It just doesn't count for everything.

If he keeps starting, he has a pretty good chance to make it. His biggest uncontrollable issue is the lack of windows.

 

Yes, but the operative word here is "clearly". Second, there are four or five other players in the exact same boat. I think only Reyna can feel like he is in the driver's seat to make final squad.

 

I like to consider multiple possibilities. All of the recent posts have merit. One missing and one Poch has done a few times is leaving players in precarious situations with their club to settle in. Did he do this with Banks with an eye on seeing if he gets lots of minutes and rapid improvement? Well only he and his coaches know. I will say as weak as our CB pool is he still has a chance. The better he plays the greater that chance is. If other players like McKenzie and Trusty his chance improves. If he's called into the next camp and shows he's improved enough compared to Robinson, Ream and other contenders brought in I'd say he will be on the team. So play increasingly well, get called in and show up in camp.

 

Its one thing to do that with a Weston McKennie, who is one of our most capped active players.

You can't leave an uncapped teenager off of rosters in order to "bed in" with his club team.

At some point, AT SOME POINT, you need to play him!

A centerback, maybe more than any position, needs reps with the guys he's going to be playing with around him. I remember Bob Bradley saying his first task as USMNT manager was to identify his GK and starting CB combo (In his case this was Howard, Gooch, Boca) and give them as many games together as possible. He wanted that unit functioning like a well-oiled machine by the time the games really started to matter.

What are the tea leaves telling us about Banks? Not what we want to happen; but what is actually happening? What are the tea leaves telling us? He was called up in September. He didn't even make the bench for the South Korea game during that camp. Then he wasn't called up to October and November. EVEN WITH CCV getting hurt and Richards being unavailable. Blackmon was also unavailable for one of those camps if my memory serves me correctly.

At SOME POINT, the tea leaves are what they are.
No amount of this board wanting it to be different can change that.

In March we're going to be 3 months from the World Cup, and Banks will be uncapped. Only have been on the bench once. I'd guess Pochettino can name a 30 man group RIGHT NOW. Will use the March camp matches against Portugal and Belgium to make those final fine adjustments. The Sebastian Berhalter versus Cristian Roldan versus Aidan Morris kind of decisions. The Aaronson versus Luna kind of decisions. We're no longer in "let's test this teenager to see if he has what it takes" mode. It'll be fine-tuning time in March.

I said after the October camp that I thought no uncapped player AT THAT TIME would make it. I've stood by that.

Could I be wrong? Yes. But I'm comfortable with my reading of the tea leaves...........................

 

Sounds like you wouldn't but we don't know what Poch will do until he makes a decision. I think your reading of the tea leaves is the most likely but if the one thing he wanted for Banks was to get as much experience as possible and bring him in for a final look he's on that path. Unlike you I'm not a mind reader

 

What do we KNOW Poch has done?

At the last camp he played a variation of a 3-4-3 for the two games

Against Uruguay, Freeman started at RCB. Against Paraguay, Scally started at RCB.
[In both games Dest then played as a RWB/RM in advance of them.]

I'm not the one mind-reading. I'm the one going with the blunt, straight up facts.

Poch only had four natural CBs on the gameday roster for those matches and one of them wasn't Chris Richards.

Banks has only even been on the bench for the USMNT once, and ya'll are adamant that he's going to be picked. Based on what evidence? Not evidence from the USMNT. Evidence from Augsburg.

 

I know this isn't your point here, but it wasn't a 343.

Freeman and Scally are RBs. Freeman and Scally spent much of the game in the attacking third. Freeman and Scally defended as RBs in a set defense.

If the fact that they sometimes stayed on the back line in the build out and once in a while stayed home to cover makes it a back three, then Berhalter played a back 3 for much of his tenure as well.

Words have to mean something, and if we're even going to call it a pseudo-343 or a variation, it should actually have 3 ATB for something longer than the initial build out stage.

This was probably our average offensive setup in the first half against Paraguay:

--------------- Balogun ------------- Scally
----- Aaronson ------- Tessman ---- Dest
Arfsten -------------------- Reyna ---------
------------ Roldan ---------------------------
------- Ream ------------ Miles ------------
---------------- Freese -----------------------

 

Generally speaking, a 4-4-2 block is the best defensive shape while the best shape for backline buildup is 3 ATB. How and when to switch is the question.

 

I would think the best teams are very seamless in switching who that 3rd guy is that they are all good at reading and covering for each other. Using the same guy to advance all the time would be much easier to scheme against.