We’re just a few weeks away from the roster release for the final (finally!) Concacaf Nations League finals of this World Cup cycle. The U.S. men’s national team has won the competition three straight times, and they’ll convene in Los Angeles soon on a mission to maintain their claim to a trophy no other country has yet lifted.
This will be Mauricio Pochettino’s first shot at silverware as an international manager, with the next one coming in the summer at the Gold Cup. While dominating Concacaf would provide welcome momentum as the U.S. approaches the runway to the World Cup, Pochettino will have one eye on molding his squad for next summer.
With that in mind, here are some thoughts on the player pool and decisions to be made next month.
The player pool is taking a step
The key to the U.S. becoming capable of a deep run in 2026 was always – no, not the head coaching change, even if that did help – the core that emerged in the previous cycle taking the next step in their individual development. The progress has not been linear but with about a year until the World Cup, there’s definitely reason for optimism overall.
