As Gregg Berhalter’s second cycle in charge of the U.S. men’s national team gets underway, there are many unknowns ahead. The biggest of those unknowns, of course, is that manager’s relationship with Gio Reyna now appears more complicated and less communicative than ever.
At least one thing, though, feels familiar about this Berhalter-led team as they march towards the 2026 World Cup: dual-national recruiting.
When the USMNT’s roster dropped on Wednesday ahead of a pair of September friendlies against Uzbekistan and Oman, there were plenty of familiar names. Matt Turner. Chris Richards. Yunus Musah. Christian Pulisic. Folarin Balogun. But in Kristoffer Lund, there was also a much less familiar one.
Along with Inter Miami’s youngster Benjamin Cremaschi, Lund is one of two new dual-nationals in the USMNT’s latest squad. Cremaschi, who is eligible for Argentina and has been chatting with and playing alongside Lionel Messi, is more of a speculative call-up for the United States than anything else. The 18-year-old is talented, but very raw and has plenty of bodies ahead of him in the U.S.’s crowded No. 8 depth chart.
18-year-old Benjamin Cremaschi (Inter Miami) and 21-year-old Kristoffer Lund (Palermo) get their FIRST EVER call ups for the USMNT.
— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) August 30, 2023
Lund previously represented Denmark at the youth level and has applied for a one-time switch with FIFA to represent the U.S. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/48zs15dzrO
The same can’t be said of Lund, a Danish-American left back. Antonee Robinson is the only locked-in left back for the USMNT, leaving plenty of room for a newcomer like Lund, 21, to earn minutes as his backup.
“We think that he could potentially fill the void that we had at the left back position in terms of our depth,” Berhalter said of Lund. “Antonee Robinson has been our clear starter…but no one has really grabbed that second position.”
So, who is Kristoffer Lund? And why does Berhalter want to integrate him into the U.S. fold? Let’s take a look.
