Mauricio Pochettino has signaled a dramatic shift toward youth in his first United States men's national team squad assembled after this summer's World Cup, naming 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan among 13 uncapped players who could make their senior debuts during the September and October international window.
The 28-man roster will contest four friendlies across the country, and if Sullivan takes the field, he would become the fourth-youngest player ever to appear for the USMNT, behind only Freddy Adu's long-standing record. The Philadelphia Union attacker turns 17 on 28 September, sandwiched between the team's opening friendly against Peru and a follow-up meeting with Chile.
Sullivan has been one of MLS's standout performers since the World Cup break, racking up six goals and five assists in 1,368 league minutes for Philadelphia under interim coach Ryan Richter. He will be joined in his first senior camp by Union academy teammates Neil Pierre and Frankie Westfield.
"He deserves all the praise," Pochettino said of Sullivan. "The important thing is to be with him and to try to provide a solid pattern and support, because still he needs to show what he can do, and needs to improve, and needs to evolve, and needs to be more mature. He's only 16, he's a kid, but I think the most important is that we have the opportunity now because he deserved to join us in the national team."
The influx of new faces has come at the expense of several World Cup regulars. Christian Pulisic was left out after struggling for playing time at Milan under manager Ruben Amorim, while Weston McKennie missed selection due to muscle fatigue that has sidelined him for much of Juventus's season. Folarin Balogun was also omitted, likely a consequence of limited minutes following a collapsed move to Everton.
Still, nine players with at least 30 senior caps were included: defenders Chris Richards, Miles Robinson, Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest; midfielders Tyler Adams, Yunus Musah, Malik Tillman and Gio Reyna; and forward Ricardo Pepi. Musah returns to the fold for the first time since before last year's Gold Cup, while Matt Freese, Chris Brady, Alex Freeman, Auston Trusty and Sebastian Berhalter also return from the World Cup squad.
Pochettino was direct about his philosophy of prioritizing current form over past achievements. "I think we need to change the idea a little bit, everyone to say 'no, that name need to be here because of the past performance.' No, no. It's a fresh start. It's a new cycle," he said. "Of course, all [players] have the door open, but now it's not what [they] did in the past... Football is about today. Soccer is about today, and that is the way that we want to build that process in this cycle."
Among the other newcomers are Zavier Gozo, who recently left Real Salt Lake for Crystal Palace, and 18-year-old Peyton Miller of New England Revolution. Goalkeepers Diego Kochen, on loan at Denmark's Lyngby from Barcelona, and Nashville SC's Brian Schwake earned first call-ups, as did Red Bull New York products Julian Hall, MLS's top-scoring teenager, and midfielder Adri Mehmeti. Orlando City's Justin Ellis, Borussia Dortmund's Mathis Albert and New England's Brooklyn Raines — who could become just the third US international born in Liberia — round out the list of debut candidates.
The youth movement is also being framed with an eye on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where Steve Cherundolo will lead the U-23 side. Pochettino explained that developing depth among younger players would give Cherundolo greater flexibility with his three allowed over-age selections, rather than needing them to fill gaps in the squad.
"It's an agreed opportunity to bring in new players, players with potential, with the possibility to spend more time training, more time together," Pochettino said, adding that building toward the Olympics was part of an understanding reached with the federation when he extended his contract. "That is the objective of the federation. It is the objective of everyone, because [this] country loves the Olympic Games, and we know that is going to be really important for soccer."
Based on reporting from Guardian Football.