A World Cup surprise? The MLS youngsters who can make cases for the USMNT roster

Zavier Gozo, 19, has starred on the wing for Real Salt Lake this MLS season. Photograph: Tyler Tate/AP With the US roster scheduled to drop on 26 May, it is crunch time for Mauricio Pochettino to finalize his World Cup squad. There were few glowing segments of footage for him to clip from the team’s feckless final pre-World Cup camp in March, with losses to Belgium and Portugal by a 7-2 combined scoreline.

On the club side, the only position group teeming with in-form options is central midfield. Matt Turner’s MLS form is far stronger than Matt Freese ’s, but his sole international start in the last 14 games ended 5-2. Christian Pulisic is goalless in 18 games for club and country.

Gio Reyna remains a bit-part player; Noahkai Banks has yet to commit his international future. Can you blame the fanbase for looking at emerging alternatives to the current group? Related: 16-year-old Mathis Albert just broke a Bundesliga record.

Beware the US soccer hype machine Throughout his year and a half on the job, Pochettino has reiterated an aim to build the best team possible even if it means leaving top individual talents off the roster. It’s famously tough to tinker with a plane mid-flight, and integrating a wholly untested player during a World Cup camp and group stage is a gamble few coaches have made. Before you evoke Theo Walcott at the 2006 World Cup, remember that the then-17-year-old was an unused substitute throughout the tournament.