USMNT September Squad Breakdown
My thoughts and musings on the last-chance roster before the World Cup
USMNT September Roster
The September matches in Europe against Japan and Saudi Arabia will be the USA’s final opportunities to prepare ahead of the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Drawn alongside Wales, England and IR Iran in Group B, the USMNT will compete in the strongest overall group in Qatar, with the four sides holding an average rank of 15 according to the March 2022 FIFA World Ranking.
DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (CLUB/COUNTRY; CAPS/GOALS)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Ethan Horvath (Luton Town/ENG; 8/0), Sean Johnson (New York City FC; 10/0), Matt Turner (Arsenal/ENG; 18/0)
DEFENDERS (9): Reggie Cannon (Boavista/POR; 27/1), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic/SCO; 11/0), Sergiño Dest (AC Milan/ITA; 17/2), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls; 27/3), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace/ENG; 8/0), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 2/0), Sam Vines (Royal Antwerp/BEL; 8/1), DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami; 74/0), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; 31/3)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Kellyn Acosta (LAFC; 52/2), Tyler Adams (Leeds United/ENG; 30/1), Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo/ESP; 11/0), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 35/9), Yunus Musah (Valencia/ESP; 19/0), Malik Tillman (Rangers/SCO; 2/0)
FORWARDS (8): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 22/6), Paul Arriola (FC Dallas; 47/10), Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas; 13/7), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders; 48/11), Ricardo Pepi (Groningen/NED; 11/3), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea/ENG; 51/21), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 12/4), Josh Sargent (Norwich City/ENG; 19/3)
Today coach Gregg Berhalter called up 26 players to the September camp. I think 26 is especially important as that is the approved size of World Cup rosters up from 23 in prior competitions. The fact that Berhalter would build a roster with that exact number tells me he’s building his positional profiles for the final World Cup roster.
“As we approach the World Cup, this is another opportunity for us to take a step forward as a group,” Berhalter said. “We have a strong roster and can use these games as a measuring stick against World Cup opponents as we continue to gain valuable experience ahead of going to Qatar.”
The roster has a mostly complete squad with a few Berhalter-esque decisions in critical positions. Jordan Pefok is likely the most glaring omission with his counterpart Ricardo Pepi being the most surprising. Pair those two decisions together and Gregg has some legitimate questions to answer regarding a player who has 4 goal contributions in 5 league games and a player in the same position in the same league with much less production. There are others that likely just missed out and are currently on the fringes of the USMNT roster for the 2022 World Cup. Let’s walk through each position for the September friendlies.
Goalkeepers
GOALKEEPERS (3): Ethan Horvath (Luton Town/ENG; 8/0), Sean Johnson (New York City FC; 10/0), Matt Turner (Arsenal/ENG; 18/0)
Ethan Horvath, Sean Johnson, and Matt Turner are in. Zack Steffen and Gaga Slonina are out. What a fall from grace this has been for Zack Steffen who in one year went from the trusted backup at Manchester City and the locked starter for USMNT to not even on the roster. This could be due to a recent injury but even his coach at Middlesbrough has stated recently he is going to stick with the other keeper Liam Roberts. Steffen could feasibly fall off the top 3 keepers for the USMNT and doesn’t have much time to make up the ground before November.
This roster also tells us that Gaga Slonina while being the best prospect in the position the US have, he won’t be going to Qatar. Sean Johnson is the clear third choice if Zack Steffen is out of the picture, and you know what? That’s alright with me.
Defenders
DEFENDERS (9): Reggie Cannon (Boavista/POR; 27/1), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic/SCO; 11/0), Sergiño Dest (AC Milan/ITA; 17/2), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls; 27/3), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace/ENG; 8/0), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 2/0), Sam Vines (Royal Antwerp/BEL; 8/1), DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami; 74/0), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC; 31/3)
Even though Tim Ream is 50 years old he’s still in the best form of his life and captaining a mid table Premier League club. With Antonee Robinson injured I was most surprised to see Ream off this list. The makeup of this roster is especially interesting in the number of defenders we’ll be bringing.
Four spots went to fullbacks and four spots went to central defenders. That’s a pretty perfect balance over a round robin and knockout tournament. I’m not quite sure Aaron Long deserves to be on this list - but he is one of a number of guys that are trusted by Berhalter and unanimously loved by the players.
We also get to see a return of Joe Scally who is in blistering form with his club team Borussia Mönchengladbach. Deandre Yedlin also makes the cut as the only player on this roster who has seen the pitch for the USMNT in a World Cup. Reggie Cannon’s versatility between fullback and centerback in a back 3 make him a valuable fringe player if others aren’t ready to step up. I’m also happy to see Sam Vines included as a LB option, as he’s been helping his club to first place in Belgium fending off the historical giants Club Brugge and Anderlecht. This window is a chance for Sam Vines and Joe Scally to play their way into the World Cup roster and have the most to gain in this window.
Outside of Tim Ream I actually think James Sands is the biggest snub. Like Cannon, Sands can play a multitude of roles between CDM and CB, and has been in great form for Rangers in Scotland. He’s not perfect, but he could be a great asset to this roster.
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Midfielders
MIDFIELDERS (6): Kellyn Acosta (LAFC; 52/2), Tyler Adams (Leeds United/ENG; 30/1), Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo/ESP; 11/0), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 35/9), Yunus Musah (Valencia/ESP; 19/0), Malik Tillman (Rangers/SCO; 2/0)
This is essentially the group we expected and there are no huge omissions or inclusions. All I’ll say for this group is wow… I can’t believe we have this talent all together at one time playing in the spine of our national team. They are all incredible talents and still so ridiculously young.
Even Kellyn Acosta has a speciality in free kicks to provide a tangible value in specific situations.
Forwards
FORWARDS (8): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 22/6), Paul Arriola (FC Dallas; 47/10), Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas; 13/7), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders; 48/11), Ricardo Pepi (Groningen/NED; 11/3), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea/ENG; 51/21), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 12/4), Josh Sargent (Norwich City/ENG; 19/3)
Before we even discuss the Pepi-sized elephant in the room I just have to say it’s so nice to see Gio Reyna back on this list. Did you know we still have never seen Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, and Gio Reyna on the pitch at the same time? Knock on wood.
Sargent rises from the dead with 5 goals and 1 assist for Norwich this season but similar numbers aren’t enough to bring Haji Wright into camp from Antalyaspor in Turkey.
Paul Arriola and Jordan Morris are “meh” for me but one of them (likely Morris) will drop off when Weah is healthy in a few weeks. If Arriola makes the World Cup roster it won’t be the end of the world. Think about how far we’ve come - where the last man on the national team roster will be a best-in-class MLS player.
Now to Jordan Pefok and Ricardo Pepi… I personally am left scratching my head. Jordan Pefok and Ricardo Pepi were playing in the same division in the German Bundesliga. Pefok scored twice and assisted twice in 5 games. Pepi couldn’t get playing time or find the back of the net and had to be loaned out to the Netherlands. I hope that Gregg still sees Pefok in the plans for November and it seems like that is the case.
Berhalter on Jordan Pefok: "We know what Jordan can do, he's been great in the Bundesliga, and we just went with someone else in this camp...we didn't want to just give up on Pepi."
To my understanding there are now 2 spots open for 3 players. If this callup for Pepi was about helping him find form and fitness, then why not call up Pefok as well to assess them together? Berhalter can call in more players if he wanted to.
But that is the modus operandi of Berhalter… Do something that makes no sense to the everyday fan, say something that doesn’t appease those same people, and have it work out anyways in the favor of the team.
If this move works out for the USMNT that’s fine, but it seems like we always make it just a little bit harder than it has to be.
Final thoughts
Overall this has to be considered as one of the best rosters the USMNT has ever assembled, and we will continue to say that everytime a new roster drops for the next decade. I will always lean to the positive, especially after living through the 2018 disaster.
This roster has the talent, ability, and camaraderie to make a deep run in the World Cup, but time will tell if that talent is being elevated or diminished by the manager. For now though, I’m a very happy and optimistic camper.
Catch the live Podcast roster discussion Wednesday night at 8:30pm ET:
I don't think that Sands is a snub. He hasn't been that consistent with Rangers. Sure, he's had a few good moments, but he's also had some really bad moments, too, including in the Champions League match against Ajax. EDIT: And he did himself no credit with getting sent off today against Napoli, including giving up a penalty (which was saved - twice!).
I'm very happy to see Gio on the list. And, like you, I think it would have been good to have both Pefok and Pepi in camp together.
(I'm a huge Celtic and CCV fan, so I guess that it's only fair that I mention CCV's role in giving up the goal - very much against the run of play - against Shakhtar today. Although the initial error was captain Callum McGregor's aggressive play, I think CCV could have been a bit more proactive in closing down the space. But, almost all Scottish outlets have him rated a 7/10.)
(Also: Celtic has three really, really good Japanese players on their squad, all of whom will be included in the US warm-up. I can't wait to see CCV try to play defense against Kyogo or Maeda. That'll tell you a lot about his worth.)