Pulisic, McKennie and Balogun Back as Pochettino Names USMNT Squad for Haiti
Christian Pulisic is back in the United States squad. Mauricio Pochettino has named a 26-man roster for the Concacaf Nations League quarter-finals against Haiti, and The Guardian reports that Weston McKennie and Folarin Balogun have also been recalled.
The Nations League is a regional competition for national teams from North and Central America and the Caribbean. This is a two-match tie, played home and away, and the winner is decided across both games. Pulisic plays his club football for AC Milan, and Balogun plays for Monaco, according to The Athletic.
Haiti hosts the first leg in Miami on 14 November. The return match takes place in Cincinnati on 17 November. Haiti is playing its home game in Miami rather than at home, because of security problems caused by gang violence in Port-au-Prince, the capital.
The roster also carries fresh faces. Two players in the squad are in line for their first international appearances, which would be their debuts. That follows the previous window, when 13 players earned their first caps.
Pochettino had already run a training camp for September and October, calling up 28 players. Naming the Haiti squad means he now has to balance familiar names with players who are still trying to earn a regular place. For the players involved, it is a chance to show what they can do on a big night in a tight tie.
