USMNT Head Coach Mauricio Pochettino Selects 25 Players For November Training Camp Ahead of Matches Against World Cup-Qualified Nations Paraguay and Uruguay
USA Hosts Paraguay, Presented by Allstate, on Nov. 15 in Chester, Pa.; Three Days Later, USMNT Returns to Tampa for First Time Since 2018 for USA-Uruguay, Presented by New York Life; All Six of the USMNT’s Opponents During the Fall Calendar Have Booked their Tickets to the 2026 FIFA World Cup
ATLANTA (Nov. 6, 2025) – With the road to the World Cup continuing in November, U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Mauricio Pochettino has selected 25 players to prepare for the upcoming matches against World Cup-bound opponents Paraguay and Uruguay. Players will begin reporting Nov. 9 into Philadelphia.
Both matches will be carried live on radio as Westwood One Sports delivers English language commentary while longtime partner Fútbol de Primera has the Spanish language call.
For the USMNT, the matches against two more World Cup qualified teams offer more experience against the opponents and styles it could face next summer. Paraguay, 2010 World Cup quarterfinalists who are making their ninth appearance in the tournament, are led by Atlanta United striker Miguel Almirón. Uruguay, currently 15th in the Coca-Cola FIFA Men’s World Rankings, finished third in the 2024 Copa America.
"As we continue to develop our squad and build on the culture we have created, this is another great opportunity for the players selected for this roster to prove they deserve to be on the final list for the World Cup,” Pochettino said. “It's important that they come into this camp prepared to show their qualities on the field and their commitment to being a good teammate. We will keep working on the competitive details in training and have the opportunity to challenge ourselves against two high quality opponents from South America.”
DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (Club/Country; Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (4): Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati; 0/0), Matt Freese (New York City FC; 11/0), Jonathan Klinsmann (Cesena/ITA; 0/0), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew; 3/0)
DEFENDERS (9): Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew; 14/1), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 35/2), Alex Freeman (Orlando City; 11/0), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse FC/FRA; 24/0), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC; 78/1), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati; 37/3), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 21/0), John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel/GER; 4/0), Auston Trusty (Celtic/SCO; 4/0)
FORWARDS (5): Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United/ENG; 54/9), Folarin Balogun (AS Monaco/FRA; 27/7), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake; 16/3), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 33/13), Haji Wright (Coventry City/ENG; 19/7)
DOUBLE DIGIT APPEARANCES IN 2025
Diego Luna leads the list of a half-dozen players on the roster with double-digit appearances in 2025, having appeared in 15 of the USMNT’s 16 matches this year. Max Arfsten has 14 caps to his credit, while Tim Ream increased his roster-leading total to 78 caps all-time with 12 matches played. Alex Freeman and Matt Freese have 11 each, while Tyler Adams sits on 10. All of the appearances for the USMNT for Arfsten, Freeman and Freese have come this year, with Luna earning all but one of his 16 caps in 2025.
MULTIPLE PLAYERS JOIN PEPI ON THE SCORING ‘TREN’
A number of U.S. players are bringing goalscoring momentum into the November camp from the frontline to the backline. Strikers Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi each scored goals in UEFA Champions League play this week. Balogun scored the only goal in Monaco’s 1-0 victory against Bodo/Glimt on Tuesday while Pepi tallied in the third minute of second half stoppage time to ensure a 1-1 draw for PSV Eindhoven away to Olympiakos.
Brenden Aaronson recorded his first goal of the Premier League season and earned Man of the Match honors in Leeds United’s 2-1 win against West Ham United on Oct. 24, while Tyler Adams made a bit of personal history by scoring the first goal of his Premier League career in Bournemouth’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.
On the domestic front, Max Arfsten provided a goal and an assist in Columbus Crew’s decisive 4-0 win against FC Cincinnati in Game Two of their series this past Sunday.
PHILADELPHIA (RE)UNION
The match against Paraguay will be a homecoming for four Philadelphia Union homegrowns. Brenden Aaronson, Matt Freese, Mark McKenzie and Auston Trusty all came through the Philadelphia Union Academy to reach the first team. Aaronson, Freese and McKenzie were part of the Supporters Shield-winning side in 2020, the first trophy in club history. Freese made his only start of the season on the final matchday that year, helping secure the league’s best record, while Aaronson was named to the MLS Best XI.
MLS CUP CHASERS
The heat of the MLS Cup playoffs will be put on simmer as the action pauses for the November international window with a total of nine players on the U.S. roster still in contention for the league title. Sebastian Berhalter and the Vancouver Whitecaps have already advanced to the Western Conference semifinals, while Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders), Max Arfsten, Patrick Schulte and Sean Zawadzki (Columbus Crew), Roman Celentano and Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati) and Matt Freese (New York City FC) will all play decisive Game Three matches this weekend.
BACK IN ACTION
With the coaching staff continuing to provide opportunities for players to make their case for a World Cup roster spot, several returning players get a chance to impress. Ricardo Pepi and Auston Trusty are back for the first time since November of 2024, which was the second camp in Pochettino’s tenure. Gio Reyna and Joe Scally join from Borussia Mönchengladbach, both receiving their first calls since the Concacaf Nations League Final Four this past March. Sean Zawadzki missed out on the Gold Cup through injury while John Tolkin is back after being a part of the squad that reached that tournament final.
The roster will have an average age of 25 years, 274 days as of the first day of training on Nov. 10. The 25-player squad also averages 22 caps.
Fourteen players return from the squad that took part in the October camp.
With 78 caps, Tim Ream is the most experienced player on the roster, followed by Brenden Aaronson (54), Tyler Adams (52), Cristian Roldan (41), Miles Robinson (37) and Sergiño Dest (35).
Eleven players come from Major League Soccer, while the other 14 come from leagues in England (4), France (3), Germany (3), Netherlands (2), Italy (1) and Scotland (1).
Striker Ricardo Pepi and defender Auston Trusty will each make their first camp appearances of the year, having last appeared during the November 2024 window.
The Borussia Mönchengladbach duo of Gio Reyna and Joe Scally return to camp for the first time since the Concacaf Nations League Finals in March.
Having pulled out of this summer’s Gold Cup due to injury, Sean Zawadzki will seek his first international appearance since his debut on Jan. 20, 2024, against Slovenia.
Defender John Tolkin is back in camp for the first time since the 2025 Gold Cup, while September attendees Tyler Adams, Sebastian Berhalter, Roman Celentano, Sergiño Dest and Jonathan Klinsmann all return after missing out last month.
Strikers Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi each scored goals in UEFA Champions League play this week. Balogun scored the only goal in Monaco’s 1-0 victory against Bodo/Glimt on Tuesday, while Pepi tallied in the third minute of second half stoppage time to ensure a 1-1 draw for PSV Eindhoven away to Olimpiacos.
For Pepi, Tuesday’s late equalizer was his third result-changing goal in second-half stoppage time in the UEFA Champions League, tying Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Agüero for the most in the history of the competition.
Along with Balogun and Pepi, Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven) also saw action in the Champions League.
Midfielder Tyler Adams recorded his first career goal in the English Premier League in Bournemouth’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.
Midfielder Brenden Aaronson tallied his first goal of the Premier League season and earned Man of the Match honors in Leeds United’s 2-1 win against West Ham United on Oct. 24.
Nine players are still involved in the MLS Cup Playoffs. Sebastian Berhalter and the Vancouver Whitecaps have already advanced to the Western Conference semifinals, while Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders), Max Arfsten, Patrick Schulte and Sean Zawadzki (Columbus Crew), Roman Celentano and Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati) and Matt Freese (New York City FC) will all play decisive Game Three matches this weekend.
Max Arfsten provided a goal and assist in Columbus Crew’s decisive 4-0 win against FC Cincinnati in Game Two of their series on Sunday.
Cristian Roldan collected two assists in Seattle Sounders’ 4-2 win against Minnesota United on Monday to force Game Three in their series.
Sebastian Berhalter recorded an assist in Vancouver Whitecaps 3-0 win against FC Dallas in Game One of their series on Oct. 26.
At age 21, defender Alex Freeman was voted the 2025 MLS Young Player of the Year last week. Freeman recorded six goals and three assists in 29 appearances for Orlando City this season.
Berhalter, Roldan and Freeman all earned their first selection to the MLS Best XI on Wednesday.
Twenty-one players took part in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy with 16 coming through the MLS Academy ranks: Brenden Aaronson (Philadelphia Union), Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls), Max Arfsten (Cal Odyssey), Sebastian Berhalter (Columbus Crew), Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati), Alex Freeman (Weston FC, Orlando City), Matt Freese (Philadelphia Union), Jonathan Klinsmann (Pateadores, Strikers FC), Diego Luna (San Jose Earthquakes, Barcelona Residency), Mark McKenzie (Philadelphia Union), Aidan Morris (Columbus Crew), Ricardo Pepi (FC Dallas), Gio Reyna (New York City FC), Miles Robinson (FC Boston Bolts), Joe Scally (New York City FC) Patrick Schulte (St. Louis Scott Gallagher, St. Louis FC), Tanner Tessmann (FC Dallas), John Tolkin (New York Red Bulls), Auston Trusty (Philadelphia Union), Haji Wright (LA Galaxy), Sean Zawadzki (Columbus Crew).
On the Pitch
On the Pitch
Open Cup
On the Pitch
On the Pitch
