USMNT 2026 World Cup Big Board 2.0: Balogun, Zendejas on the rise

The September planetary model was a spot each implicit the spot for the U.S. team, though it did decorativeness connected an upbeat note. A mediocre first-half show Saturday against South Korea condemned the Americans to a 2-0 defeat, but the squad rebounded Tuesday against Japan arsenic attackers Folarin Balogun and Alex Zendejas made the astir of their uncommon starts, contributing a extremity each successful a 2-0 victory. A alteration successful enactment -- let's telephone it a 3-4-3, with the presumed wingers taking up positions successful the pockets underneath the halfway guardant -- provided accrued antiaircraft stability, though determination is inactive country for improvement.

Such performances, combined with injuries and immoderate players changing clubs, mean determination has been question successful the 2nd variation of ESPN's USMNT World Cup Big Board. There's besides the information that U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino has said that the clip for looking astatine caller players is over, and that he'll beryllium bringing successful a person approximation of his first-choice squad for the adjacent planetary model successful October.

So let's instrumentality a look astatine the predicted 26-man squad and which bubble players mightiness inactive find a mode through.

Goalkeepers (3)

Matt Freese | 27 years aged | New York City FC

Freese was coagulated successful the 2 September friendlies, truthful it's not a agelong to deliberation that he's the starting goalkeeper until further notice. However, that's not to accidental his relation arsenic the No. 1 keeper is wholly sewn up. Pochettino's insistence that nary starting spot is harmless indispensable beryllium believed fixed immoderate of the players omitted from caller rosters, but Freese has strengthened his position.

Matt Turner | 31 | New England Revolution (on indebtedness from Lyon)

Turner precocious told ESPN, "[I'm] assured that I'll beryllium backmost successful October if I proceed the level I'm playing at." His signifier has cooled disconnected a spot aft his awesome commencement to his 2nd stint with the New England Revolution, with his goals prevented per 90 minutes dropping from 0.50 earlier this play to 0.06. He'll request to instrumentality to apical signifier if helium is to get backmost to the apical of the U.S. goalkeeping heap.

- Carlisle: Zendejas' starring relation has travel astatine the close clip for himself and the USMNT
- O'Hanlon: Top 50 USMNT players, ranked by nine form
- Hernandez: With 9 months until World Cup, does Pochettino cognize his champion XI?

Zack Steffen | 30 | Colorado Rapids

Steffen has remained accordant passim the season, and his underlying numbers are somewhat amended than Freese's successful presumption of goals prevented p...