New U.S. men's soccer coach Mauricio Pochettino shares goals for his first roster

LOS ANGELES — Mauricio Pochettino named his first roster as coach of the men's national soccer team Wednesday. And in many ways it was little different than the rosters that have come before.

It's a little older, with the 25 players averaging just more than 25 years of age, and a bit more experienced, with 17 of the 21 outfield players reporting to camp this weekend with at least 12 international caps. And there are some familiar faces returning as well, with goalkeeper Zach Steffen getting his first call-up since March 2023 and midfielder Gianluca Busio back for the first time since the 2023 Gold Cup.

Among the missing are midfielders Tyler Adams and Gio Reyna, center backs Chris Richards and Cameron Carter-Vickers and right back Sergiño Dest, who are all dealing with injuries. But forward Tim Weah, midfielder Weston McKennie and defender Antonee Robinson are all back after missing the September friendlies.

The biggest difference is the coach. Pochettino, the former Tottenham and Chelsea manager, was chosen to replace Gregg Berhalter as coach last month and will be leading the U.S. for the first time when it plays Panama on Oct. 12 in Austin, Texas, and Mexico three days later in Guadalajara.

Pochettino, who has never coached a national team before, said he plans to keep things basic in his first training camp in an effort to prevent the information overload that hampered past USMNT teams.

"The most important thing is to be simple. Not to create too many complications," he said. "We are going to settle the principles. Build the relationship first. We are going to create a relationship on the pitch. That is important.

"We are going to be very simple, very clear in our ideas and concepts."

Pochettino's arrival in the U.S. was delayed both by immigration paperwork issues and Hurricane Helene. But he said he expects to arrive Saturday and preside over his first training session Monday in Austin.

Pochettino said the only player he has spoken with is Robinson, and that happened largely by chance when he ran into the defender and his Fulham teammates at a restaurant in London.

"The decision [was] not to go to see any player because we didn't want to create anything wrong between them," he said. "Now the opportunity is going to be to meet them and talk in an individual way and in a quality way."

As for his playing strategy, Pochettino said the most important thing is to find the right balance.

"Of course we have players that can score," he said. "I am excited to see them in action. We are going to, from the beginning, [try] not to create too much. We are going to try to play two systems, one 4-2-3-1 and one 4-3-3 and from there develop our way to play."

But his goal isn't just to create a winning team. He also wants to have a team that is fun to watch.

"Soccer needs to be an exciting game for the USA [fans,]" he said. "They need to enjoy every time they go to the stadium."

The roster

— Goalkeepers: Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew), Zack Steffen (Colorado Rapids), Matt Turner (Crystal Palace)

— Defenders: Marlon Fossey (Standard Liege), Kristoffer Lund (Palermo), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati), Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach), Auston Trusty (Celtic)

— Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United), Gianluca Busio (Venezia), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough), Yunus Musah (AC Milan), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven)

— Forwards: Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Josh Sargent (Norwich City), Timothy Weah (Juventus), Haji Wright (Coventry City).