Nations League Tournament Represents Big Test for USMNT, Pochettino

The semifinals of the 2025 CONCACAF Nations League tournament takes place Thursday night.

On one side of the bracket, Canada will square off against Mexico. The other side includes Panama versus the host United States. Both games will be played at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. The Finals/3rd place match will also occur Sunday in LA.

The USMNT is expected to win this tournament, and thus cement itself as the cream of the proverbial crop.

Mexico is in somewhat of a rebuild. Panama is limited by a lack of relative resources. Canada is certainly trending in the right direction — though the collective depth within the pool could still use some improvement. There’s really no argument from the standpoint that the U.S. has the deepest collection of talent within the region, and quite possibly the best manager with Mauricio Pochettino now on board.

This is one of the few dress rehearsals available for the U.S. to utilize before next year’s World Cup given the fact the team does not have to go through a qualifying process.

Things are somewhat complicated by a rash of injuries. Auston Trusty, Johnny Cardoso, and Antonee Robinson all were dropped with recent ailments. The trio adds to a lengthier list of regulars who will also be unavailable. Among them include Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Malik Tillman, Sergino Dest, and Haji Wright. Pochettino opted to rely on some different selections — calling in Diego Luna, Tanner Tessmann, Brian Gutierrez, Jack McGlynn, Patrick Agyemang, and Marlon Fossey over regulars such as the Aaronson brothers, Aidan Morris, Alejandro Zendejas, Luca de la Torre, and Gianluca Busio (among others).

This will be a big opportunity for Josh Sargent to stake a claim for the No. 9 spot. With Pepi and Balogun unavailable, there’s no reason Sargent can’t make the most of this chance. He’s scoring a ton of goals in the Championship for Norwich City. He also could be the most complete striker within the pool in terms of technical ability, size, strength, hold up play, and aerial prowess.

Luna, one of the more promising young players in MLS, might also get the opportunity to emerge on the international stage ahead of a possible move abroad.

Of course, the team’s fortunes will likely sit with the core of this team. If Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Tyler Adams, and Gio Reyna are all playing well, the prospects of hoisting a trophy seems rather good.