- The US Men’s National Team announced the 26-man roster for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
- The group is highlighted by young stars in Christian Pulisic, Weston McKinnie, and Gio Reyna.
- The US squad is talented but expected to be the youngest at the World Cup and thus, inexperienced.
The US Men’s National Team roster is officially set for the 2022 World Cup.
The 26-man roster that will be heading to Qatar later this month was announced from a live event in Brooklyn, New York, on Wednesday. The Americans will look to surge back into the tournament after missing the tournament altogether in 2018.
Here’s a look at the roster:
Goalkeepers: Evan Horvath, Sean Johnson, Matt Turner
Defenders: Cameron Carter-Vickers, Sergino Dest, Aaron Long, Shaq Moore, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, Joe Scally, DeAndre Yedlin, Walker Zimmerman
Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson, Kellyn Acosta, Tyler Adams, Luca De La Torre, Weston McKinnie, Yunus Musah, Cristian Roldan
Forwards: Jesus Ferreira, Jordan Morris, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Josh Sargent, Tim Weah, Haji Wright
Can the US build on its young promise?
The US will likely have the youngest team at the World Cup, and the Americans have some questions to answer.
Led by the 24-year-old Pulisic, this team’s promising core has plenty of talent, but very little experience — only a few players remain from the 2018 men’s national squad, which failed to qualify altogether, and only Yedlin has played in a World Cup.
The US men aren’t entering in top form either, after two dispiriting friendly matches — a 2-0 loss to Japan and 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia — in September. Combined with injuries and the tournament’s awkward timing — it’s occurring in the midst of the European season to avoid Qatar’s hot summer — have left the team on shaky footing.
The USMNT, which is in Group B alongside England, Iran, and Wales, will kick off its tournament on November 21 against a Welsh team led by Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey.
While it will be the first time the US meets Wales at a World Cup, the Americans will go on to face England, against whom they pulled out a memorable draw in the 2010 World Cup, on November 25. Four days later, they’ll take on Iran, a team that upset the US, 2-1, in the group stage of the tournament in 1998.
Speaking on stage from the event in Brooklyn, Yedlin said: “This is definitely the little revenge tour, if you want to call it that.”
