The United States Men’s National Team are back on the field next week as the September international window takes flight, and we will see a few of the veteran players return to the mix. Today, U.S. Soccer released the September USMNT roster ahead of friendlies against South Korea and Japan, where 22 players are named with one to be confirmed later.
Christian Pulisic, who notably requested to be excluded from the Gold Cup roster this summer so he could rest after a long season, is back on the roster.
Whether lingering strife remains between him and head coach Mauricio Pochettino for opting out of the team this summer appears muted as Pulisic seeks to work his way back into the team. Also returning to the roster are Sergiño Dest and Tim Weah, who missed the Gold Cup roster due to nagging injuries. 22 players are on the current roster, with a 23rd player to be confirmed later. However, there are a ton of changes to the roster as several notable regulars are absent.
The USMNT roster:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati), Matt Freese (New York City FC), Jonathan Klinsmann (Cesena)
DEFENDERS (8): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew), Noahkai Banks (FC Augsburg), Tristan Blackmon (Vancouver Whitecaps), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven), Alex Freeman (Orlando City), Nathan Harriel (Philadelphia Union), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Tyler Adams (Bournemouth/ENG; 50/2), Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps), Luca de la Torre (San Diego FC), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake), Jack McGlynn (Houston Dynamo), Sean Zawadzki (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS (5): Damion Downs (Southampton), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan) Josh Sargent (Norwich City), Tim Weah (Marseille), Alex Zendejas (Club América)
There are 12 players on the roster who competed in the Gold Cup this summer. However, there are some notable absences from players who were excluded due to recovering from injury, as Pochettino opted to have them remain with their teams to continue building up full fitness, even as some recently returned to the field. Those players include Folarin Balogun, Antonee Robinson, Ricardo Pepi, Malik Tillman, and Patrick Agyemang.
Several regulars were not selected for the September roster, including Weston McKennie, Matt Turner, Yunus Musah, Haji Wright, Brenden Aaronson, Gio Reyna, Joe Scally, and Johnny Cardoso. Meanwhile, Alex Zendejas gets his first USMNT camp of 2025 after playing well for Club América.
Making the roster is dual national Tristan Blackmon, whose call-up was accidentally leaked by new Vancouver Whitecaps teammate Thomas Müller during a press conference over the weekend. Blackmon was reportedly contacted by Canada head coach Jesse Marsch in the spring to gauge his interest in playing for Canada at the international level. He instead accepts the call-up to join the USMNT for this camp.
Four other players are looking to earn their first cap for the USMNT. Dual national Noahkai Banks makes his USMNT camp debut, while Blackmon, Roman Celenatano, and Jonathan Klinsmann are in search of their first cap after returning to the national team.
The USMNT take on South Korea on September 6th at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey. They then complete the international window with a friendly against Japan on September 9th at Lower.com Field in Columbus.
