A familiar face is back in the U.S. men's national team picture, replacing an injured player on manager Mauricio Pochettino's roster for matches in September and October.
Damion Downs will replace Ricardo Pepi in the squad to face Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada, U.S. Soccer announced Sunday, Sept. 20.
Pepi was substituted from PSV's match against FC Twente less than 10 minutes in with an injury that will keep him from joining up with the Stars and Stripes.
In his place, Pochettino brings in Downs, who was a key figure in the team's run to the 2025 Gold Cup final. The German-born forward scored the final penalty in a shootout against Keylor Navas and Costa Rica, helping push the Americans into the semifinals.
He is yet to score in open play for the
U.S. and also is still looking for his first goal since joining St. Louis City SC on loan from Southampton in early September. The 22-year-old has played in five matches for the red-hot MLS side, but only sparingly. He has 35 minutes of action across those five matches.
Downs will hope to give the U.S. a boost up top, competing for minutes with a young group of forwards including Orlando City's Justin Ellis and the New York Red Bulls' Julian Hall.
Pochettino opted not to call Folarin Balogun, who started for the U.S. at the World Cup, with the AS Monaco man still getting into rhythm after a summer transfer saga that saw a move to Everton come through. He also had a knock, though he made his season debut over the weekend for Monaco.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Damion Downs returns to USMNT as Ricardo Pepi injury replacement
