USMNT roster selected ahead of Concacaf Nations League semifinals

CHICAGO – U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Gregg Berhalter has selected the 23-player USMNT roster that will compete for its third Concacaf Nations League title. The U.S. will face Jamaica in the first semifinal on March 21 at 7 p.m. ET at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The match will be shown live on Paramount+ and Univision, and fans will also be able to follow the matches via Facebook, Twitter @USMNT, Instagram @USMNT and the official U.S. Soccer App.

The other match features Mexico and Panama, with the winners of the semifinals set to square off for the championship on March 24 in Arlington.

The U.S. players will begin reporting March 18 into the Dallas metropolitan area and focus on the opportunity to lift another trophy.

The roster represents significant continuity with a total of 21 of the 23 players having been part of one of the Nations League-winning squads in 2021 and 2023. Seven took part in both championship runs: Sergiño Dest, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Antonee Robinson and Tim Weah.

“The objective ahead of us is clear. We want to compete for our third Nations League title and continue to challenge ourselves to succeed in knockout round matches,” USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter said. “This is a group of players with a lot of experience in these types of matches and we look forward to the opportunity.”

DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (CLUB/COUNTRY; CAPS/GOALS)

GOALKEEPERS (3): 22-Drake Callender (Inter Miami; 0/0), 18-Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City/WAL; 9/0), Matt Turner (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 37/0)

DEFENDERS (8): 2-Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 32/2), 23-Kristoffer Lund (Palermo/ITA; 3/0), 16-Mark McKenzie (Genk/BEL; 13/0), 13-Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 55/1), 3-Chris Richards (Crystal Palace/ENG; 14/1), 5-Antonee Robinson (Fulham/ENG; 39/4), 12-Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 28/3), 19-Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 8/0)

MIDFIELDERS (6): 4-Tyler Adams (Bournemouth/ENG; 36/1), 15-Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis/ESP; 9/0), 14-Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo/ESP; 20/0), 8-Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 49/11), 6-Yunus Musah (AC Milan/ITA; 33/0), 7-Gio Reyna (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 24/7)

FORWARDS (6): 20-Folarin Balogun (Monaco/FRA; 8/3), 17-Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 8/0), 9-Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 22/10), 10-Christian Pulisic (AC Milan/ITA; 64/28), 11-Josh Sargent (Norwich City/ENG; 23/5), 21-Tim Weah (Juventus/ITA; 35/5)

EYES ON THE PRIZE

The USMNT is currently the only team to have lifted the CNL championship, having captured the title in the first two editions of the competition. In the 2021 Final against Mexico, following dramatic goals from Gio Reyna, Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic, substitute goalkeeper Ethan Horvath made the extra time penalty stop on Andres Guardado to ensure the USA’s 3-2 win in the inaugural championship match.

In 2023, Christian Pulisic’s brace and Ricardo Pepi’s goal off the bench helped the USA to a 3-0 win against Mexico in the CNL Semifinal, before Chris Richards and Folarin Balogun each scored their first international goals off Gio Reyna assists to give the USA a 2-0 win against Canada in the Final. Goalkeeper Matt Turner kept back-to-back clean sheets in the two matches. 

THE BUDDY SYSTEM

The roster features five sets of club teammates, all of which come from European sides: AC Milan (Musah, Pulisic), Fulham (Ream, A. Robinson), Juventus (McKennie, Weah), Nottingham Forest (Reyna, Turner), and PSV Eindhoven (Dest, Pepi, Tillman).

Yunus Musah and Christian Pulisic have helped lift Milan to second in the league table as well as the Round of 16 of the Europa League. In Serie A, they are neck and neck with Weston McKennie and Tim Weah as Juventus sit just one point behind them in the standings.

Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson are in their fourth season as teammates at Craven Cottage. Matt Turner moved from Arsenal to Nottingham Forest and was joined in January by Gio Reyna, who came on loan from Borussia Dortmund.

The PSV trio all joined former U.S. Soccer Sporting Director Earnie Stewart in Eindhoven this summer, the side sitting top of the table in the Dutch Eredivisie and remaining unbeaten throughout the league campaign.

BIENVENIDO!

After being dogged by injuries, two players return to the U.S. fold for the first time since the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Tyler Adams, who wore the captain’s armband in Qatar, has been hampered by a long-term hamstring ailment and has now returned to availability. Meanwhile, Josh Sargent enters USMNT camp in great club form for Norwich City where he has 12 goals in 17 appearances this season, 10 of which have come since the new year.

VS. JAMAICA

The USA and Jamaica have met 32 times in their history dating back to 1988. While the U.S. holds a lifetime advantage of 19-3-10, seven of the last 10 matches have been decided by a goal or less. The teams are no strangers to meeting in official competition, having squared off 22 times in various tournaments including four in the last three years.

AT AT&T STADIUM

Three times have been a charm for the USMNT at AT&T Stadium, with the venue having hosted three different Gold Cup matches which resulted in U.S. victories and subsequent tournament titles.

On July 24, 2013, two goals and an assist from Landon Donovan led the United States to a 3-1 win in the semifinal against Honduras.

Four years later, the USA utilized two second-half goals in the span of 10 minutes from Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey to defeat Costa Rica 2-0 in the 2017 Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinal. Dempsey’s 82nd minute strike was the 57th of his international career, tying him with Landon Donovan for the most all-time by a USMNT player.

In 2021 it was Matthew Hoppe’s turn in the limelight, his 83^rd minute header proving decisive against The Reggae Boyz in the 1-0 shutout win on July 25, 2021, in the Gold Cup Quarterfinals.

ABOUT THE CONCACAF NATIONS LEAGUE

Created to maximize the quality, quantity and frequency of competitive matches for all of Concacaf’s 41 Member Associations, the 2023-24 Concacaf Nations League, which commenced last September, has a revamped format to include more direct elimination matches that will qualify teams to continental summer competitions.

The 2023-24 CNL continues to be played in a three-League format (A, B, and C), with the region’s 41 men’s senior national teams distributed into the Leagues according to the results of the 2022-23 CNL.

The USA competed in League A, which was expanded to include 16 teams (up from 12) and a new quarterfinal round has been created to deliver more direct elimination matches.

ROSTER NOTES

• The roster will have an average age of 24 years, 310 days as of the first day of training on March 18.

• The squad has an average of 26 caps, and 12 in official competition.

• The 23 players represent clubs in nine different countries: England (7), Italy (5), Netherlands (3), Spain (2), USA (2), Belgium (1), France (1), Germany (1), Wales (1).

• Christian Pulisic (64) is the leading cap-winner, followed by Tim Ream (55), Weston McKennie (49), Antonee Robinson (39), Matt Turner (37), Tyler Adams (36), and Tim Weah (35).

• Midfielder Tyler Adams and forward Josh Sargent make their first USMNT camp appearances since the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

• In total, 21 of the 23 players have been part of one of the Nations League-winning squads, with seven taking part in both championship runs in 2021 and 2023: Sergiño Dest, Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Gio Reyna, Antonee Robinson, Tim Weah.

• Other 2021 CNL winners: Tyler Adams, Ethan Horvath, Mark McKenzie, Tim Ream and Josh Sargent.

• Other 2023 CNL winners: Folarin Balogun, Drake Callender, Johnny Cardoso, Luca de la Torre, Ricardo Pepi, Chris Richards, Miles Robinson, Joe Scally, and Matt Turner.

• Hailing from Little Elm, Texas, Weston McKennie will earn his 50^th cap with his next appearance and is in line to do so in his first competitive match in the Dallas area.

• McKennie, who leads all USMNT players with 12 caps and six goals in CNL play, is one of three FC Dallas products on the roster, joined by Ricardo Pepi and Chris Richards.

• Players on the roster have contributed eight of the team’s nine goals in previous CNL Finals tournaments: Christian Pulisic (3), Folarin Balogun, Weston McKennie, Ricardo Pepi, Gio Reyna, and Chris Richards (1 each).

• In the 2021 Final vs. Mexico, following dramatic goals from Gio Reyna, Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic, substitute goalkeeper Ethan Horvath made the extra time penalty stop on Andres Guardado to ensure the USA’s 3-2 win in the inaugural championship match.

• In 2023, Christian Pulisic’s brace and Ricardo Pepi’s goal off the bench helped the USA to a 3-0 win against Mexico in the CNL Semifinal, before Chris Richards and Folarin Balogun each scored their first international goals off Gio Reyna assists to give the USA a 2-0 win against Canada in the Final. Goalkeeper Matt Turner kept back-to-back clean sheets in the two matches.

• Five players have previously scored against Jamaica: Ricardo Pepi (2 goals on Oct. 7, 2021), Christian Pulisic (2 goals on July 3, 2019), Sergiño Dest (March 25, 2021), Weston McKennie (July 3, 2019), Tim Weah (Nov. 16, 2021).

• Forward Ricardo Pepi has scored seven goals in his last 10 USMNT caps, all coming with him in a substitute role.

• Fifteen players have previous appearances against Jamaica, with defender Antonee Robinson leading the way with four career caps against the Reggae Boyz.

• Goalkeeper Matt Turner and defender Miles Robinson are the only two players on the roster to previously appear for the USMNT at AT&T Stadium, with the pair contributing to the team’s 1-0 shutout win against Jamaica in the Concacaf Gold Cup quarterfinal on July 25, 2021.

• Defender Sergiño Dest is suspended for the semifinal against Jamaica after receiving a red card in the USA’s last CNL contest at Trinidad and Tobago on Nov. 20, 2023.

• Capped three times, defender Kristoffer Lund joins uncapped goalkeeper Drake Callender as the two players seeking their first appearances in official competition.

• Josh Sargent returns to the USMNT in great club form for Norwich City where he has 12 goals in 17 appearances this season, 10 of which have come since the new year.

• Fourteen players are products of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, with nine players coming from MLS Academies: Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls), Drake Callender (San Jose Earthquakes), Luca de la Torre (San Diego Surf, Nomads SC), Ethan Horvath (Real Colorado), Weston McKennie (FC Dallas), Mark McKenzie (Philadelphia Union), Ricardo Pepi (FC Dallas), Christian Pulisic (PA Classics), Gio Reyna (New York City FC), Chris Richards (FC Dallas, Texas SC Houston), Miles Robinson (FC Boston Bolts), Josh Sargent (St. Louis Scott Gallagher), Joe Scally (New York City FC), and Tim Weah (New York Red Bulls, BW Gotteschee).