USMNT Announces Roster for November CONCACAF Nations League; Pulisic out Injured

The United States men's national team will embark on a journey to three-peat as CONCACAF Nations League champions when they take on Trinidad and Tobago in two quarterfinal matchups this month.

The U.S. will host Trinidad and Tobago at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 16 before traveling to Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on Nov. 20.

The United States announced its official roster for the two pre-Thanksgiving matchups on Thursday, and it does not include Christian Pulisic or Tim Weah due to hamstring injuries.

USMNT November Roster

GOALKEEPERS (3): Ethan Horvath (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 9/0), Gaga Slonina (KAS Eupen; 1/0), Matt Turner (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 35/0)

DEFENDERS (8): Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic/SCO; 14/0), Sergiño Dest (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 30/2), Kristoffer Lund (Palermo/ITA; 3/0), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 53/1), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace/ENG; 14/1), Antonee Robinson (Fulham/ENG; 37/2), Miles Robinson (Atlanta United; 27/3), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach/GER; 7/0)

MIDFIELDERS (8): Paxten Aaronson (Eintracht Frankfurt/GER; 1/0), Johnny Cardoso (Internacional/BRA; 9/0), Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo/ESP; 19/0), Lennard Maloney (Heidenheim/GER; 1/0), Weston McKennie (Juventus/ITA; 48/11), Yunus Musah (AC Milan/ITA; 31/0), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 22/6), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 6/0)

FORWARDS (5): Brenden Aaronson (Union Berlin/GER; 36/8), Folarin Balogun (Monaco/FRA; 6/3), Kevin Paredes (Wolfsburg/GER; 2/0), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven/NED; 20/9), Alex Zendejas (Club América/MEX; 7/1)

Pulisic being left off the USMNT roster comes as little surprise after the AC Milan forward suffered an injury in the second half of a 2-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in Champions League action on Tuesday.

The Athletic's Greg O'Keeffe reported Thursday that Pulisic avoided a "serious injury," which is a sigh of relief for AC Milan and the United States, as he is a vital piece in the attack for club and country.

As for Weah, the Juventus midfielder suffered an injury in the first half of a Serie A matchup against Hellas Verona last month and remains sidelined.

With Pulisic and Weah off the roster, there will be opportunities for other players to step up in their absences, including Ricardo Pepi and Gio Reyna.

Pepi is enjoying a solid start to the 2023-24 season with Eredivisie club PSV Eindhoven. In nine league matches, he has tallied three goals and one assist.

Reyna, meanwhile, has appeared in just three league matchups for Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund and has yet to record a goal or an assist. He has been out of Edin Terzic's starting XI after being benched for a loss against Bayern Munich.

It's becoming clear that Terzic prefers other options in Dortmund's attack, leaving Reyna without consistent minutes, though he hasn't seen the field consistently over the past few seasons due to injuries limiting his opportunities.

Now that he's on the USMNT's November roster, it's time for the 20-year-old to step up.

Other players to be left off the USMNT roster include Tyler Adams, who is dealing with a hamstring injury, and Josh Sargent, who is working through an ankle ailment. Goalkeepers Zack Steffen and Sean Johnson are also sidelined with injuries.

Despite the absences of some key players, the United States should be able to pull out victories over Trinidad and Tobago this month. If they move on to the next round, the Americans will be hoping for the returns of Pulisic and Weah in particular.