In Fayetteville, Florida, it has been announced that forward Folarin Balogun will not be participating in the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup due to an ankle injury. This decision is part of a larger shakeup, as the team is already missing several key players such as Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, Antonee Robinson, Yunus Musah, and Gio Reyna.
In addition to Balogun’s absence, defender DeJuan Jones and midfielder Sean Zawadzki have also been removed from the roster by coach Mauricio Pochettino. Jones is dealing with a lower body injury, while Zawadzki has a knee injury. As replacements, defenders Walker Zimmerman and Nathan Harriel, along with forward Paxten Aaronson, have been brought in to fill the gaps.
The adjustments have led to four changes in the original 27-man team announced on May 22. Notably, goalkeeper Patrick Schulte suffered an oblique injury and was replaced by Chris Brady last Wednesday.
Paxten Aaronson, aged 21, joins his older brother Brenden on the roster, making it possible for the siblings to play together on the national team for the first time. Paxten’s sole appearance for the U.S. team was a friendly against Colombia in January 2023.
Harriel is one of seven players who could potentially make their debuts for the U.S. team. The list of new hopefuls includes Matt Freese, Alex Freeman, Sebastian Berhalter, Quinn Sullivan, Chris Brady, and Damion Downs.
Coming off a series of disappointing performances at the previous year’s Copa America and the CONCACAF Nations League in March, the U.S. team is entering its last comprehensive training camp during a FIFA fixture period before next year’s World Cup. Players commenced training in Chicago starting Sunday. The team will play friendly matches against Turkey and Switzerland, scheduled for June 7 in East Hartford, Connecticut, and June 10 in Nashville, Tennessee, respectively. Following these games, they will go head-to-head with Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi Arabia, and Haiti during the first round of the Gold Cup.
The updated roster includes:
**Goalkeepers**: Chris Brady (Chicago), Matt Freese (New York City), Zack Steffen (Colorado), Matt Turner (Crystal Palace)
**Defenders**: Max Arfsten (Columbus), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven), Alex Freeman (Orlando), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Tim Ream (Charlotte), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Miles Robinson (Cincinnati), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville)
**Midfielders**: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds), Tyler Adams (Bournemouth), Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis), Luca de la Torre (San Diego), Diego Luna (Salt Lake), Jack McGlynn (Houston), Quinn Sullivan (Philadelphia), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven)
**Forwards**: Paxton Aaronson (Utrecht), Patrick Agyemang (Charlotte), Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Damion Downs (Cologne), Brian White (Vancouver), Haji Wright (Coventry)