The race to be No. 9: Which strikers will the USMNT take to the World Cup?

For the past 2 FIFA World Cup cycles, the starting striker spot for the U.S. men's nationalist team has been a seemingly unsolvable puzzle, with nary of the candidates capable to drawback a steadfast clasp of the spot. It wasn't ever this way.

Eric Wynalda and Brian McBride led the U.S. enactment during the 1990s and 2000s. Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey carried the emblem done the 2014 World Cup and somewhat beyond, though it's worthy noting that Dempsey spent a important chunk of his planetary vocation successful a midfield role. The aforesaid was existent for Landon Donovan.

Since then, the hunt for a starting cardinal striker has taken connected beatified grail-like qualities.

The 2022 World Cup rhythm ne'er did uncover a guardant who could present connected a accordant basis. Jesús Ferreira, Jordan Pefok, Ricardo Pepi, Josh Sargent and Gyasi Zardes were each fixed starts during World Cup qualifying. For a time, it looked similar Pepi would emerge, but helium faded toward the second portion of the rhythm -- mostly owed to a deficiency of playing clip astatine nine level -- and was beaten to the roster enactment portion by Haji Wright. An wounded to Sargent astatine the World Cup, combined with ineffectiveness by Ferreira and Wright, meant that the U.S. didn't get arsenic overmuch retired of the presumption successful Qatar arsenic they would person hoped.

This rhythm has been adjacent much muddled. Pepi, Sargent and Wright stay successful contention, joined by Folarin Balogun and Patrick Agyemang. And portion Balogun has gained a spot of daylight betwixt himself and the different potentials acknowledgment to an awesome show successful a caller affable against Japan, helium hasn't secured the spot conscionable yet.

With the October model featuring friendlies against Ecuador and Australia, here's wherever things basal successful the contention to deterioration the No. 9 for Mauricio Pochettino's USMNT astatine adjacent summer's World Cup, and a statistical comparable subordinate for the 5 successful contention to commencement up apical travel June.

Folarin Balogun | 24 | AS Monaco

When Balogun committed to the USMNT successful May of 2023 -- helium was besides eligible to correspond England and Nigeria -- helium was thought to beryllium the USMNT's semipermanent reply to the striker position. Initially determination was a payoff: helium scored successful the 2023 Concacaf Nations League last against Read Entire Article