Head coach Mauricio Pochettino has named nine MLS players in his 27-man roster for the U.S. Men’s National Team’s friendlies this month against Belgium and Portugal.
The MLS players selected include all four goalkeepers: Matt Freese (New York City FC), Matt Turner (New England Revolution), Chris Brady (Chicago Fire), and Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati). Defenders Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati), Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew), and Tim Ream (Charlotte FC) are also included, along with midfielders Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps) and Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders).
These matches serve as important preparation for the upcoming FIFA World Cup in North America, as both Belgium and Portugal are ranked in the top 10 globally.
Currently ranked 15th, the U.S. will play No. 9 Belgium on March 28 and No. 6 Portugal on March 31, with both matches taking place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Pochettino mentioned, “We have spent the last 18 months developing the player pool to make informed decisions for the World Cup roster, and this is another valuable opportunity. We need to treat these games as if they are part of the World Cup, with the players showing the right mentality and commitment.”
The USMNT will hold another camp before their World Cup opener against Paraguay on June 12.
Pochettino’s squad will play Senegal on May 31 in Charlotte, N.C., followed by a match against Germany on June 6 in Chicago.
The rest of the roster for the USMNT’s first camp in 2026, with players starting to report on March 22, includes:
DEFENDERS: Alex Freeman (Villarreal), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach), and Auston Trusty (Celtic).
MIDFIELDERS: Johnny Cardoso (Atletico Madrid), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough), Gio Reyna (Borussia Monchengladbach), Tanner Tessmann (Olympique Lyon), and Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen).
FORWARDS: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United), Patrick Agyemang (Derby County), Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), and Tim Weah (Olympique Marseille).
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