FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. (AP) – Tyler Adams, Diego Luna and Hadji Wright will join Sergiño Dest in missing U.S. friendlies against Belgium and Portugal, while Gio Reyna, Patrick Agyemang and Johnny Cardoso were among the 27 players selected for the final roster before coach Mauricio Pochettino announced his World Cup squad on Tuesday.
Noakai Banks was not included as a debut candidate. The 19-year-old defender, who is also eligible to play for Germany, made his Bundesliga debut with Augsburg in January 2025 and trained in the United States last September, but did not feature in a match.
Left-back Anthony Robinson is back and could make his first appearance since November 2024 after recovering from a knee injury. He is among 10 additional players, including defenders Chris Richards, Cardoso, fellow midfielder Malik Tillman and forwards Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah, along with several other players who missed November’s friendlies against Paraguay and Uruguay due to injury or fitness issues.
Weston McKennie returned from the club in November to remain at Juventus, shortly after the club had a new coach. Agyeman was added after scoring 10 goals in 34 league games in England’s second division derby.
Goalkeepers Matt Turner and Chris Brady were added, while keepers Jonathan Klinsmann and Patrick Schulte were removed, along with defender John Tolkien and midfielder Timothy Tillman.
Players begin coverage on Sunday ahead of the game against Belgium in Atlanta on March 28th and Portugal three days later. It will be Pochettino’s last chance to assess his players together before announcing his 26-man World Cup squad on May 26. The U.S. national team will play friendly games against Senegal on May 31st and Germany on June 6th, before opening the World Cup against Paraguay on June 12th.
Adams will be the captain of the U.S. national team at the 2022 World Cup. Missed last weekend’s game between Bournemouth and Burnley Due to unspecified issue. America’s top right back, Dest, Injured left hamstring while playing Match against PSV Eindhoven on March 7th.
Luna, a midfielder who emerged last year, made his season debut with Major League Soccer’s Real Salt Lake last weekend as a second-half substitute after missing three games with a knee injury. Wright was forced off in the second half of Coventry’s game against Southampton last weekend due to a groin injury.
Also defender/midfielder James Sands underwent ankle surgery on Friday. And he is expected to miss the rest of the season at St. Pauli.
Reyna scored a goal against Paraguay in November. It was his first international start in 16 months, but he did not receive any playing time for the club again. He has played just 403 Bundesliga minutes for Borussia Mönchengladbach this season. , Nothing happened after January 17th.
Pulisic missed the November game to recover. hamstring injury. He has scored 10 goals in his first 15 games for AC Milan this season, but has not scored in his last 11.
Only nine players are on MLS teams.
Name list:
Goaltenders: Chris Brady (Chicago), Roman Celentano (Cincinnati), Matt Freeze (New York City), Matt Turner (New England Revolution).
Defenders: Max Alfsten (Columbus), Alex Freeman (Villarreal), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Tim Ream (Charlotte), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Anthony Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (Cincinnati), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Auston Trusty (Glasgow Celtic).
Midfielders: Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver), Jonny Cardoso (Atletico Madrid), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough), Gio Reyna (Borussia Monchengladbach), Cristian Roldan (Seattle), Tanner Tessman (Lyon). Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen).
Forward: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds). Patrick Agyeman (Derby), Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Tim Weah (Marseille).
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