We’re just a week away from the kickoff of the largest sporting event on the planet. Was the human cost and disruption to the wider soccer calendar worth it just to improve the image of a small petrostate? Probably not! Will it still be fun to watch? Definitely so! After missing out in 2018, the USA are back in the tournament having qualified without too much stress. This preview will cover the US team that will be one of the youngest in tournament history as well as the rest of their group stage opponents. A wider preview covering the rest of the groups and more important things like “who has the best kits?” will drop tomorrow.

US Roster Breakdown

Goalkeepers

Matt Turner – Arsenal – (Top of the) Premier League

Ethan Horvath – Luton Town – EFL Championship

Sean Johnson – NYCFC – MLS

The biggest surprise of the entire US roster leaked the night before the official announcement. Manchester City’s Zach Steffen, USA’s first choice keeper for much of World Cup Qualifying, was totally left off the roster. While his form has dipped during his loan spell at Middlesbrough and he is prone to the occasional howler, few expected him to be dropped entirely. Matt Turner is expected to start for the Yanks fresh off his move to North London over the summer. He’s played limited minutes for top of the table Arsenal as their second choice keeper behind England international Aaron Ramsdale.

Turner has performed well when he has played, however. He allowed just one goal (a penalty) during his four appearances for the club in the Europa League group stage, and made a number of impressive saves during the two US friendlies in September. He unfortunately missed the last two Europa League matches with a groin injury, giving American fans a small worry. He’s supposedly fully back to health and was back on the subs bench for Arsenal’s last three matches, but you’d likely feel better if he’d played a bit more recently. Horvath and Johnson are both capable backups should Turner falter. Ultimately, there’s rarely much to worry about with American keepers despite arguably the biggest shock of the roster announcement.

Defenders

Cameron Carter-Vickers – Celtic – Scottish Premier League

Sergiño Dest – AC Milan – Serie A

Aaron Long – NY Red Bulls – MLS

Shaq Moore – Nashville SC – MLS

Tim Ream – Fulham – Premier League

Antonee “Jedi” Robinson – Fulham – Premier League

Joe Scally – Borussia Mönchengladbach – Bundesliga

Deandre Yedlin – Inter Miami – MLS

Walker Zimmerman – Nashville SC – MLS

There were no major surprises although James Sands and Reggie Cannon may have room to complain. The uncapped Auston Trusty, an Arsenal player having a great loan spell at Birmingham City, was another potential addition to the CB group, although his exclusion was less surprising. Antonee Robinson and Walker Zimmerman are the only locked in starters in defense. Berhalter has sometimes played three at the back with two wing-backs which does suit this roster considering the attacking abilities of Dest and Jedi. Regardless of the shape, the US has question marks after Zimmerman at CB. Miles Robinson was the first choice next to Zimmerman for the qualifying campaign, but is recovering from a torn achilles. Chris Richards was usually second choice behind Robinson, but battled injuries this season at Crystal Palace and will miss the tournament.

The remaining options are less than stellar. Aaron Long got significant minutes during the last friendly window, but did little to impress. Tim Ream has played very well for Fulham this season and plays next to Antonee Robisonson every week. However, he has been poor during previous USMNT stints and has not appeared for the US in over a year. Ream is also a more natural ball playing center half that likes to sit deeper while Berhalter’s system calls for more athletic defenders playing a high line. Cameron Carter-Vickers has had a solid season with Celtic featuring in almost all of their league matches and four of their six Champions League tilts, but has fairly limited international experience. I think Ream gets the nod here, but wouldn’t be surprised to one of the other options lined up next to Zimmerman to start the tournament.

The other question mark is who starts at right back, although the options there are better than in the center. Dest has played limited minutes since moving from Barcelona to AC Milan, but he has the highest ceiling of right backs. I’d expect him to get the nod, but the rest of the group offers some intriguing choices. Deandre Yedlin is the only player on the roster with World Cup experience having appeared in three matches during the 2014 tournament. 19 year old Joe Scally is probably third choice which bodes well for the future considering the youngster plays regularly in the Bundesliga. Shaq Moore is probably the last fullback on the roster, and it would be surprising to see him get minutes during the tournament unless the US somehow clinches qualification after two matches.


Midfielders

Brendan Aaronson – Leeds United – Premier League

Kellyn Acosta – LAFC – MLS

Tyler Adams – Leeds United – Premier League

Luca De La Torre – Celta Vigo – La Liga

Weston McKennie – Juventus – Serie A

Yunus Musah – Valencia – La Liga

Christian Roldan – Seattle Sounders – MLS

Christian Roldan getting a spot over Paul Arriola or Malik Tillman is the only surprise among the midfield selections, and it isn’t a huge one at that. The starters mostly pick themselves from this group. Gregg Berhalter found the MMA midfield (Musah, McKennie, and Adams) midway through WC Qualifying, and has stuck with it whenever those players are available. The US looks great when those three play, so it’d be a major surprise to see him move away from that in Qatar.

Outside of those three, Brendan Aaronson has pushed hardest for minutes during the current club season. He’s been very impressive for Leeds, and pairing him up with Adams, his club teammate, seems like a natural fit. Aaronson has played as a 10 or wide forward for Leeds, so his inclusion may depend on the shape of the US team. Even if he starts matches on the bench, his speed and directness are ideal for a second half sub, especially if the Americans are chasing a goal.

Forwards

Jesús Ferreira – FC Dallas – MLS

Jordan Morris – Seattle Sounders – MLS

Christian Pulisic – Chelsea – Premier League

Gio Reyna – Borussia Dortmund – Bundesliga

Josh Sargent – Norwich City – Championship

Tim Weah – Lille – Ligue Un

Haji Wright – Antalyaspor – Süper Lig

Many were disappointed not to see Union Berlin’s Jordan Pefolk or Groningen’s Ricardo Pepi get called up to the roster in place of Wright or Morris. More important than who missed out, however, is the return of Gio Reyna. The 19 year old was injured through much of qualifying and last club season, but has shone in the Bundesliga and Champions League for Dortmund this fall.

During qualifying, Berhalter played Ferreria through the middle with Pulisic wide on the left and Weah wide right. The return of Reyna may change that, however. Reyna as a false-nine in place of Ferreria or wide right in place of Weah are both interesting options. Although he’s listed as a midfielder, Brendan Aaronson may figure into the forward rotation as a second striker or wide. The US roster has with a wealth of wide attacking talent and second-striker types, but there’s no clear cut central forward option. I’d expect Ferreria to start centrally with Reyna and Pulisic, but wouldn’t be surprised if Sargent gets the nod through the middle. Regardless of who starts centrally, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re subbed at 60-70 minutes each match as I’d expect one of Berhalter’s five subs to be in this position.

The Opponents

The USA were drawn into Group B with England, Wales, and Iran. While it doesn’t appear to be a group of death on paper, it is the only group where all four teams are ranked in the top-20 of the FIFA rankings. No one will be a pushover, but no one’s guaranteed to advance either.

Wales – November 21 – 2:00 ET

Wales is appearing at their first World Cup since the 1958 edition hosted in Sweden. They do have recent major tournament experience at the two most recent European Championships reaching the semifinal in 2016. As such, they shouldn’t be too overwhelmed by the big stage. The Welsh squad features two huge names in Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey. Both are a bit past their prime and play limited minutes for their clubs, but they are capable of great moments of quality. Look no further than Bale’s header for LAFC in the MLS Cup to send the match to penalties.

After Ramsey and Bale, the roster is filled with mostly mid-tier Premier League and Championship players. Tottenham’s Ben Davies anchors their defense with fellow Spurs defender Joe Rodon who is on loan at Rennes this season. Welsh fans will hope for the health of Joe Allen. The Swansea central midfielder was key to their qualifying campaign, but has been out since mid-September with a hamstring injury. Manager Rob Page named Allen to his squad, but it remains to be seen if he’ll be healthy enough to play against the US on the first full day of the tournament.


England – November 25 – 2:00 ET

Fresh off trips to the 2018 World Cup Semifinals and Euro 2020 Final, England are the favorites to advance as group winners. That said, all is not well with the Three Lions. Their results in recent Nations League matches left much to be desired, and manager Gareth Southgate is feeling the heat. Southgate received criticism for sticking with players like Harry Maguire, John Stones, Luke Shaw, and Jordan Pickford despite their less than stellar recent form. England have with ample attacking talent, but many feel Southgate’s system doesn’t properly utilize them. A team that can choose from Harry Kane, Phil Foden, Buakayo Saka, Jack Grealish, Jude Bellingham, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Marcus Rashford should never struggle to score goals.

It hasn’t helped that some of England’s big names have struggled with their clubs since the Euro Final. Alexander-Arnold looked like the best right back in the world for large portions of last year. Now he looks like a liability for Liverpool. Jaden Sancho looks so lost at Manchester United that he didn’t make the squad. Grealish looked better at Villa before his move to Man City two summers ago. Rashford and Sterling looked to have regressed slightly as well. Add injuries to fullbacks Reese James and Kyle Walker, and it’s easy to see a team possibly primed for an early exit. US fans will hope that’s the case and the Yanks can squeak out a result on Black Friday.


Iran – November 29 – 2:00 ET

It’s tough to get a read on the Iranian squad since a large number of their players feature for clubs in the Iranian and Qatari domestic leagues. It features a mix of players from mid-tier European clubs supplemented by players from a relatively weak domestic league. That said, what looks like a minnow on paper has had very good results in recent years. They enter the tournament as the highest ranked team from Asia ahead of bigger names like Japan, South Korea, and Australia. Team Melli qualified for both the 2014 and 2018 tournaments, so much of their team will have World Cup experience as well.

Portuguese manager Carlos Quieroz is back in charge for this tournament. He held the reigns at the previous two World Cups, but had short stints with Colombia and Egypt between 2019 and 2021. Their best attacking threat is Sardar Azmoun who has 41 goals in 65 international appearances. His club form has been poor, however, having scored just once for Bayer Leverkusen after moving to Germany from Zenit St. Petersburg in January 2022. Their starting lineup will likely feature a pair of teammates from AEK Athens, Eshan Hajsafi and Milad Mohammadi. Both players are more defensive in nature and can fill in at left back, left wing, and defensive midfield.

The elephant in the room regarding Iran is the recent protests in that country. It’s hard to know how recent unrest in Iran will affect the team’s performance. Before a recent 1-1 friendly against Senegal, the team covered their team emblems before the match and during the national anthem. At least five members of the World Cup squad, Azmoun among them, spoke out in support of the protests as well. Other Iranian athletes and national teams took similar actions since the protests began in September.

It’s impossible to say whether the added pressure will make diamonds or cause them to wilt in Qatar. Before Quieroz officially announced his squad on Monday, there were rumors players critical of the regime would be left out entirely. That did not happen so Iran will take their full strength roster to neighboring Qatar. The Iranian team does have history with the US at the World Cup. Their win over the Americans at France 1998 was their first ever World Cup win. The US will hope to flip that script in this tournament.