USMNT announce inexperienced World Cup squad, with Manchester City keeper missing out, as rest of squads announced | CNN

CNN
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‘Tis the season for wall charts and fans gathering around to pick their starting teams for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

And with countries announcing their squads for international football’s premier competition, the debate has ramped up to the maximum.

On Wednesday, the US Men’s National Team (USMNT) announced their 26-player squad which will travel to Qatar to compete in the World Cup, with head coach Gregg Berhalter choosing a young and inexperienced group.

Berhalter’s choices didn’t come without controversy though. The biggest surprise was the decision to not pick Manchester City goalkeeper Zack Steffen.

The 27-year-old, who is on loan at second-tier English club Middlesborough this season, rotated with Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner for the starting position, but has been omitted from the final squad.

“In some of the cases, it’s more about what we have than what we don’t have,” Berhalter said during a press conference after the announcement. “With the three goalkeepers listed on the roster, we feel great, we feel really good about it.

“We saw a lot of progress with Matt Turner in this last six months, we know Ethan Horvath has been competing at a good level at Luton in the Championship, and Sean Johnson has been a mainstay in this group since day one.”

The other main surprise was the selection of Haji Wright over Ricardo Pepi. Wright, who is second leading scorer in the Turkish top-flight, was chosen ahead of Pepi, who had become a favorite of Berhalter in recent games.

“In the case of Ricardo, that was a really difficult conversation that I had to have with him,” Berhalter said.

“It’s always difficult when a guy helps you get to the World Cup, he scores three goals in World Cup qualifying and isn’t going to be a part of the program. Again, it’s more about who we did add that we felt good about.”

All but one of the 26 will be making their World Cup debut at this year’s tournament and, according to the USMNT, it will be the youngest team to qualify for the World Cup.

According to the team, the USMNT’s starting 11 through its 14 qualifiers had an average age of 23.82, almost two years younger than the next closest team.

The USMNT’s first game is on November 21 against Wales.

Here’s a full list of the squads for the 2022 Qatar World Cup:

Ecuador

Manager: Gustavo Alfaro

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Netherlands

Manager: Louis van Gaal

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Qatar

Manager: Félix Sánchez

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Senegal

Manager: Aliou Cissé

The final squad has not been announced yet.

England

Manager: Gareth Southgate

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Eric Dier, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Ben White

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Jordan Henderson, Mason Mount, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice

Forwards: Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, James Maddison, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, Callum Wilson

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Iran

Manager: Carlos Queiroz

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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United States

Manager: Gregg Berhalter

Goalkeepers: Ethan Horvath, Sean Johnson, Matt Turner

Defenders: Cameron Carter-Vickers, Sergiño Dest, Aaron Long, Shaq Moore, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, Joe Scally, DeAndre Yedlin, Walker Zimmerman

Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson, Kellyn Acosta, Tyler Adams, Luca de la Torre, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, Cristian Roldan

Forwards: Jesús Ferreira, Jordan Morris, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Josh Sargent, Tim Weah, Haji Wright

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Wales

Manager: Rob Page

Goalkeepers: Wayne Hennessey, Danny Ward, Adam Davies

Defenders: Ben Davies, Ben Cabango, Tom Lockyer, Joe Rodon, Chris Mepham, Ethan Ampadu, Chris Gunter, Neco Williams, Connor Roberts

Midfielders: Sorba Thomas, Joe Allen, Matt Smith, Dylan Levitt, Harry Wilson, Joe Morrell, Jonny Williams, Aaron Ramsey, Rubin Colwill

Forwards: Gareth Bale, Kieffer Moore, Mark Harris, Brennan Johnson, Dan James

Argentina

Manager: Lionel Scaloni

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Mexico

Manager: Gerardo Martino

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Poland

Manager: Czesław Michniewicz

Goalkeepers: Wojciech Szczęsny, Łukasz Skorupski, Bartłomiej Drągowski

Defenders: Kamil Glik, Bartosz Bereszyński, Jan Bednarek, Artur Jędrzejczyk, Matty Cash, Nicola Zalewski, Robert Gumny, Jakub Kiwior, Mateusz Wieteska

Midfielders: Grzegorz Krychowiak, Kamil Grosicki, Piotr Zieliński, Przemysław Frankowski, Sebastian Szymański, Damian Szymański, Szymon Żurkowski, Krystian Bielik, Jakub Kamiński, Michał Skóraś

Forwards: Robert Lewandowski, Arkadiusz Milik, Krzysztof Piątek, Karol Świderski

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Saudi Arabia

Manager: Hervé Renard

The final squad has not been announced yet.

Australia

Manager: Graham Arnold

Goalkeepers: Andrew Redmayne, Mathew Ryan, Danny Vukovic

Defenders: Nathaniel Atkinson, Aziz Behich, Milos Degenek, Thomas Deng, Fran Karacic, Joel King, Kye Rowles, Harry Souttar, Bailey Wright

Midfielders: Keanu Baccus, Cameron Devlin, Ajdin Hrustic, Jackson Irvine, Riley McGree, Aaron Mooy

Forwards: Martin Boyle, Jason Cummings, Mitch Duke, Craig Goodwin, Garang Kuol, Mathew Leckie, Awer Mabil, Jamie Maclaren

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Denmark

Manager: Kasper Hjulmand

Goalkeepers: Kasper Schmeichel, Oliver Christensen

Defenders: Simon Kjær, Joachim Andersen, Joakim Mæhle, Andreas Christensen, Rasmus Nissen Kristensen, Jens Stryger Larsen, Victor Nelsson, Daniel Wass.

Midfielders: Thomas Delaney, Mathias Jensen, Christian Eriksen, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg

Forwards: Andreas Skov Olsen, Jesper Lindstrøm, Andreas Cornelius, Martin Braithwaite, Kasper Dolberg, Mikkel Damsgaard, Jonas Wind

21 slots in the 26-man squad have been announced, with the final five places yet to be named.

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France

Manager: Didier Deschamps

Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola, Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda

Defenders: Lucas Hernández, Théo Hernandez, Presnel Kimpembe, Ibrahima Konaté, Jules Koundé, Benjamin Pavard, William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Raphaël Varane

Midfielders: Eduardo Camavinga, Youssouf Fofana, Mattéo Guendouzi, Adrien Rabiot, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Jordan Veretout

Forwards: Karim Benzema, Kingsley Coman, Ousmane Dembélé, Olivier Giroud, Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappé, Christopher Nkunku

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Tunisia

Manager: Jalel Kadri

The final squad has not been announced yet.

Costa Rica

Manager: Luis Fernando Suárez

Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas, Esteban Alvarado, Patrick Sequeira

Defenders: Francisco Calvo, Bryan Oviedo, Daniel Chacón, Óscar Duarte, Kendall Watson, Rónald Matarrita, Keysher Fuller, Juan Pablo Vargas, Carlos Martínez

Midfielders: Celso Borges, Bryan Ruiz, Yeltsin Tejeda, Gerson Torres, Jewison Bennette, Youstin Salas, Roan Wilson, Brandon Aguilera, Douglas López, Anthony Hernández, Álvaro Zamora

Forwards: Joel Campbell, Johan Venegas, Anthony Contreras

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Germany

Manager: Hansi Flick

Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Kevin Trapp

Defenders: Matthias Ginter, Antonio Rüdiger, Niklas Süle, Nico Schlotterbeck, Thilo Kehrer, David Raum, Lukas Klostermann, Armel Bella-Kotchap, Christian Günter

Midfielders: İlkay Gündoğan, Jonas Hofmann, Leon Goretzka, Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sané, Jamal Musiala, Joshua Kimmich, Thomas Müller, Julian Brandt, Mario Götze

Strikers: Kai Havertz, Youssoufa Moukoko, Niclas Füllkrug, Karim Adeyemi

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Japan

Manager: Hajime Moriyasu

Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt

Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Maya Yoshida, Hiroki Sakai, Shogo Taniguchi, Ko Itakura, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Hiroki Ito, Miki Yamane

Midfielders: Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Daichi Kamada, Yuki Soma, Kaoru Mitoma, Ao Tanaka, Takefusa Kubo

Forwards: Takuma Asano, Shuto Machino, Daizen Maeda, Ritsu Doan, Ayase Ueda

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Spain

Manager: Luis Enrique

The final squad has not been announced yet.

Belgium

Manager: Roberto Martínez

Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels, Thibaut Courtois, Simon Mignolet

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld, Zeno Debast, Wout Faes, Arthur Theate, Jan Vertonghen, Timothy Castagne, Thomas Meunier

Midfielders: Yannick Carrasco, Thorgan Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Leander Dendoncker, Amadou Onana, Youri Tielemans, Hans Vanaken, Axel Witsel

Forwards: Michy Batshuayi, Charles De Ketelaere, Jérémy Doku, Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Dries Mertens, Loïs Openda, Leandro Trossard

READ: The Belgian Blueprint – How a small nation became a European superpower

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Canada

Manager: John Herdman

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Croatia

Manager: Zlatko Dalić

Goalkeepers: Dominik Livaković, Ivica Ivusić, Ivo Grbić

Defenders: Domagoj Vida, Dejan Lovren, Borna Barisić, Josip Juranović, Josko Gvardiol, Borna Sosa, Josip Stanisić, Martin Erlić, Josip Sutalo

Midfielders: Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovacić, Marcelo Brozović, Mario Pasalić, Nikola Vlasić, Lovro Majer, Kristijan Jakić, Luka Sucić

Forwards: Ivan Perisić, Andrej Kramarić, Bruno Petković, Mislav Orsić, Ante Budimir, Marko Livaja

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Morocco

Manager: Walid Regragui

Goalkeepers: Yassine Bounou, Munir Mohamedi, Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti

Defenders: Achraf Hakimi, Noussair Mazraoui, Roman Saïss, Nayef Aguerd, Badr Benoun, Jawad El Yamiq, Achraf Dari, Yahia Attiyat-Allal

Midfielders: Sofyan Amrabat, Azzedine Ounahi, Selim Amallah, Yahya Jabrane, Abdelhamid Sabiri, Bilel El Khanouss

Forwards: Hakim Ziyech, Youssef En-Nesyri, Abderrazak Hamdallah, Amine Harit, Ilias Chair, Abde Ezzalzouli, Sofiane Boufal, Zakaria Aboukhlal, Walid Cheddira

Brazil

Manager: Tite

Goalkeepers: Alisson, Ederson, Weverton

Defenders: Alex Sandro, Alex Telles, Dani Alves, Danilo, Bremer, Éder Militão, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva

Midfielders: Bruno Guimarães, Casemiro, Éverton Ribeiro, Fabinho, Fred, Lucas Paquetá

Forwards: Antony, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli, Neymar Jr., Pedro, Raphinha, Richarlison, Rodrygo, Vinícius Jr.

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Cameroon

Manager: Rigobert Song

Goalkeepers: Simon Ngapandouetnbu, Devis Epassy, Andre Onana

Defenders: Nicolas Nkoulou, Enzo Ebosse, Nouhou Tolo, Olivier Mbaizo, Collins Fai, Jean-Charles Castelletto, Christopher Wooh

Midfielders: Gael Ondoa, Samuel Oum Gouet, Pierre Kunde, Martin Hongla, Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Olivier Ntcham

Forwards: Georges-Kevin Nkoudou, Vincent Aboubakar, Bryan Mbeumo, Jean-Pierre Nsame, Karl Toko Ekambi, Moumi Ngamaleu, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Christian Bassogog, Souaibou Marou, Jerome Ngom

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Serbia

Manager: Dragan Stojković

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Switzerland

Manager: Murat Yakin

Goalkeepers: Gregor Kobel, Philipp Köhn, Jonas Omlin, Yann Sommer

Defenders: Manuel Akanji, Eray Comert, Nico Elvedi, Ricardo Rodriguez, Fabian Schär, Silvan Widmer

Midfielders: Michel Aebischer, Edimilson Fernandes, Fabian Frei, Remo Freuler, Ardon Jashari, Noah Okafor, Fabian Rieder, Xherdan Shaqiri, Djibril Sow, Renato Steffen, Granit Xhaka, Denis Zakaria

Forwards: Breel Embolo, Christian Fassnacht, Haris Seferovic, Reuben Vargas

Ghana

Manager: Otto Addo

The final squad has not been announced yet.

READ: Meet Otto Addo, the coach responsible for guiding some of Europe’s brightest young talents (2021)

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Portugal

Manager: Fernando Santos

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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South Korea

Manager: Paulo Bento

The final squad has not been announced yet.

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Uruguay

Manager: Diego Alonso

The final squad has not been announced yet.