Pochettino reveals why Pepi was cut from USMNT roster

Mauricio Pochettino on blending youth and experience, and Balogun’s return.

Mauricio Pochettino announced his USMNT roster Wednesday for the two-game Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal series against Haiti.

The squad features 25 players, which will be whittled down to 23.

In contrast to the September-October window, when he called up 28 players, Pochettino has gone with three fewer representatives this time around.

Several young players who impressed during the fall friendlies have retained their places, while a number of familiar faces have earned recalls.

The attacking portion of Pochettino’s squad features a mix of returning veterans and emerging talent.

Teenage trio Cavan Sullivan, Julian Hall and Justin Ellis earned another call-up.

Star duo Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun return after recovering from recent injuries.

Many fans had also expected to see Ricardo Pepi’s name on the roster.

The PSV striker was among several notable omissions, alongside Tim Weah, Yunus Musah, Matt Turner and Johnny Cardoso.

Pochettino explained his center forward call-ups — Balogun’s return and Pepi’s omission.

Pepi finds himself in a situation where he has played just 51 minutes for PSV Eindhoven since recovering from an unspecified fitness issue.

The added complication for Pepi is that Balogun is also still working his way back to full match fitness following his own injury problems.

The Monaco striker has yet to start a game in the 2026-27 season.

He did play the second half of his team’s most recent fixture against Paris FC, where he scored his first goal of the campaign.

Cardoso’s absence is perhaps the easiest to understand.

The Atlético Madrid midfielder missed the 2026 World Cup because of an ankle injury.

He has only just returned to training after a thigh problem.

He could feature in Sunday’s high-profile LaLiga showdown with Barcelona.

However, his lack of recent playing time has effectively ruled him out of a USMNT recall this time around.

Pochettino said he’s looking forward to seeing how the returning veterans combine with the teenagers he introduced to the team during the fall international window.

“Haiti is going to be tough; we already played them in Dallas in the Gold Cup and it was a really tough game,” Pochettino said.

“Concacaf teams are improving a lot because of the good coaches and the players who have the facilities to improve and be more professional.

“It’s going to be a tough two games; we know Haiti’s physicality and quality, and it’s important to show them respect.”

While the previous window prioritized experimenting with young talents, Pochettino shifted his focus in November.

Young talents like Zavier Gozo, Brooklyn Raines, Chris Brady, Peyton Miller, Cole Campbell, Damion Downs and Frankie Westfield missed out.

They are all expected to join Steve Cherundolo’s U-23 squad as part of their Olympic preparations for LA 2028.

However, there are still various young talents who, despite being eligible for the Olympics, have returned to the senior team.

“It’s always a coordination between the first team, U-23s and U-18s, the communication is always there, and I think the priority is always the first team,” Pochettino said.

“We need to add players to the roster to try and provide a good balance to the team and ensure that we can compete at our best and win games.

“At the same time, we also need to develop and help these young players grow, and it’s a great opportunity to mix younger players with more experienced players.”

He has played just once in Borussia Dortmund’s last 11 matches, but that hasn’t stopped Pochettino from calling up Mathis Albert.