Pochettino defended the decision to notify omitted U.S. internationals by email
Mauricio Pochettino, the head coach of the United States men's national soccer team, publicly defended the decision to inform players who did not make the final roster for the 2026 World Cup by email rather than through personal phone calls. According to The Guardian's report from the roster presentation in New York, the Argentine coach said that this method of communication does not mean a lack of respect for the omitted players, but rather an attempt to treat everyone equally and without creating additional expectations. His explanation came after the final list of 26 players was announced for the tournament that will be played in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The issue immediately sparked debate because it concerns one of the toughest decisions in international soccer: players who had been part of the wider group for months or years had to be told that they would not appear at the biggest sporting event of their careers. Pochettino, according to the same report, said that decisions about leaving players out weigh heavily on him and that even after presenting those selected, he cannot fully enjoy the moment because he is thinking about those who remained outside the team.
The debate opened after the final roster was announced
U.S. Soccer had previously announced that the World Cup roster would be presented on May 26, 2026, at a public event in New York, with a television broadcast on FOX. According to U.S. Soccer's announcement, the event was conceived as a fan gathering and the official presentation of the 26 players who will represent the United States in the home portion of the tournament. After the roster was announced, The Guardian stated that the U.S. national team kept much of the core of the squad from the 2022 World Cup, including Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams, Chris Richards and Tim Weah. The same source states that the roster includes 13 players with World Cup experience and 13 debutants, giving the team a combination of continuity and new solutions. Pochettino, according to The Guardian, emphasized that he chose the group he believes has the best chance of helping the national team achieve results, while describing the decisions as very difficult.
At the center of the debate was not only the structure of the roster, but also the way in which the players who did not make the final cut were informed. According to The Guardian, 55 players were in the provisional pool, and those selected received a video message from the coach. Players who did not make the final 26 were informed by email, which some former internationals and commentators judged to be cold and insufficiently personal. The criticism carried particular weight because this is a World Cup that the United States is organizing together with Canada and Mexico, so the pressure on the home national team is greater than in usual qualifying cycles. In that context, every decision by the coach, from player selection to the method of communication, is seen as an indicator of the culture and relationships within the national team.
The coach claims the calls would have been more for him than for the players
Pochettino, according to The Guardian's report, rejected claims that email was a sign of indifference. His main message was that omitted players at that moment do not want to listen to apologies or long explanations that do not change the outcome. He explained that individual calls could serve more as confirmation of his own humanity than as real help to players who had just learned they were not traveling to the tournament. He bases that thinking on the view that the decision had already been made and that a subsequent conversation cannot change the fact that someone remained outside the roster. According to the same source, Pochettino emphasized that he is aware of the emotional weight of those decisions, claiming that he had slept badly for weeks because of the players he had to leave out.
The Argentine expert also tried to explain the practical side of the decision. If he called only some of the players, for example those considered closest to the roster, it would raise the question of why the same approach was not given to the others. If he called all those omitted from the provisional list, the conversations would turn into a long process in which he would have to explain to each player the difference between the current assessment, tactical need and personal value. According to The Guardian, Pochettino said that he does not want to give players messages that could sound like false comfort, for example that someone else is a better option at this moment, but that this does not mean he is a better player or that the omitted player will never again have an opportunity. In international soccer, that line is especially sensitive because rosters change, injuries happen, and omitted players can become important again as soon as the next cycle.
The biggest surprises: Luna, Tessmann and Morris outside the squad
According to The Guardian, the most notable omission is that of Real Salt Lake midfielder Diego Luna, who collected many minutes in the attacking part of the team during Pochettino's tenure. Tanner Tessmann and Aidan Morris were also left off the roster, which raised questions about the depth of the U.S. national team in midfield. At the same time, Alejandro Zendejas of Club América was included, although, according to The Guardian, under Pochettino he had significantly fewer minutes than some players who were not selected. Such decisions show that the coach was not deciding solely based on continuity of appearances, but also according to an assessment of player profiles, the current state of the team and tactical needs for the tournament. U.S. Soccer had earlier carried Pochettino's message that selection is not based only on form, but also on experience, the coaching staff's intuition, data and impressions from the field.
The final roster, according to The Guardian, consists of goalkeepers Chris Brady, Matt Freese and Matt Turner; defenders Max Arfsten, Sergiño Dest, Alex Freeman, Mark McKenzie, Tim Ream, Chris Richards, Antonee Robinson, Miles Robinson, Joe Scally and Auston Trusty; midfielders Tyler Adams, Sebastian Berhalter, Weston McKennie, Gio Reyna, Cristian Roldan and Malik Tillman; and forwards Brenden Aaronson, Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi, Christian Pulisic, Tim Weah, Haji Wright and Alejandro Zendejas. That squad shows that Pochettino is counting on a core that already knows the pressure of a major competition, but also on players who will experience the World Cup for the first time. The return of Pulisic, McKennie, Adams and Weah gives the team a recognizable identity, while the inclusion of new names shows an attempt to expand competition ahead of a tournament in which the United States will play in front of a home crowd. Gio Reyna's inclusion has also attracted special attention, a player whose talent has never been in doubt, but whose continuity, minutes and physical condition were often mentioned in the media before the roster. By doing so, Pochettino took a risk, but also showed that in certain roles he values individual quality and the ability to change the rhythm of a match.
Former internationals are not unanimous
The Guardian states that some former U.S. internationals criticized Pochettino's approach and believed that a personal conversation would have been more appropriate. Herculez Gomez, a participant at the 2010 World Cup, particularly emphasized that previous coaches, such as Bob Bradley and Jürgen Klinsmann, had known how to speak personally with players who were left off the roster. According to The Guardian, Gomez described such a method of notification as very harsh toward players who had invested years of work in the national team. His criticism particularly mentions Diego Luna, because he had an important role in the period before the final roster and appeared in promotional material connected to the World Cup. From that perspective, the email is not seen only as an administrative message, but as a symbol of a lack of personal recognition for the work invested.
Landon Donovan, one of the most famous U.S. internationals and a player who was himself left off the roster for the 2014 World Cup, took a more nuanced position. According to The Guardian, Donovan said he could understand Pochettino's logic because such news remains painful regardless of the way in which it is delivered. At the same time, he acknowledged that a player who had long been part of the national team might expect a personal call, while a player who had not been so close to the squad might not attach the same weight to the method of communication. His reaction shows that there is no single standard that would satisfy all players. In modern sport, where communication, mental health and relationships inside the dressing room are increasingly important topics, the way bad news is delivered has become part of a broader debate about leadership.
FIFA's deadline leaves room for changes due to injuries
Although the roster was presented as final, FIFA's regulatory framework leaves limited room for changes. In May, FIFA announced that national teams for the 2026 World Cup must submit final rosters within the prescribed deadline and that rosters operate within the tournament rules on the number of players. The Guardian states that Pochettino has until June 1 to submit the final roster to FIFA and that extraordinary changes due to injuries can be made until the day before the United States' first match, which is scheduled for June 12 against Paraguay. This means that players currently omitted, including Luna and Tessmann, according to available information, are not completely out of contention to appear if injuries or other extraordinary circumstances occur. That is precisely why some commentators believe the coach must maintain a relationship with players left off the roster, because one of them could very quickly become part of the tournament squad again.
The U.S. national team continues its preparations at the newly opened National Training Center in Fayetteville, Georgia, according to data published by The Guardian. Before the start of the World Cup, warm-up matches are planned against Senegal in Charlotte on May 31 and Germany in Chicago on June 6, after which the team will go to its training base in Orange County, California. The United States opens the tournament on June 12 against Paraguay in Inglewood, then plays Australia in Seattle on June 19, and closes the group stage on June 25 against Turkey again in Inglewood. That schedule further increases the pressure on Pochettino because all decisions made in May will very quickly be tested on the field. The stake is not only the result in the group, but also the impression of a host that wants to show it is ready to make a step forward at the most important moment.
The selection of players also opens broader questions about the role of the coach
Pochettino's case shows how different the role of a national-team coach is from club work. At a club, a coach works with players every day, can gradually explain decisions and build relationships through training, while a national-team coach often has short windows, wider lists and decisions that can change the course of someone's career in a single day. According to an earlier U.S. Soccer announcement, Pochettino had already emphasized in March that players who were not called up then could still be considered for the final roster, but also that those who were in the squad must not consider their place secure. In that way, he had already tried to establish the rule that competition would remain open until the end. When the roster was closed, the same principle became a source of dissatisfaction because open competition turned into concrete omissions.
In sporting terms, Pochettino's decision can be viewed as an attempt to preserve an equal procedure for everyone. In human terms, critics believe that equality of procedure does not necessarily mean fairness toward players who had a larger role in the national team. That is the core of the dispute: the coach argues that personal calls could open new questions and create an impression of selective treatment, while critics argue that some players deserved more than an official message. The fact that the debate broke out ahead of a home World Cup gives it additional weight, because the U.S. national team is under increased scrutiny from the public, the media and former players. Pochettino will ultimately be judged above all by results, but the way he leads the group and manages disappointment could affect the atmosphere around the team.
For the selected players, presented on May 26 in New York, the final phase of preparations for the tournament begins. For those who remained outside the roster, the story is not necessarily over, but at the moment it is marked by disappointment and the question of whether the coach should have chosen a different method of communication. Pochettino explained his decision as consistent and honest, while some former internationals believe that in such moments more personal connection must be shown. The debate will probably follow the U.S. national team at least until the start of the tournament, especially if injuries or changes in form reopen the door to players who are now outside the squad. In the meantime, the United States enters the final preparations with a roster that combines experience, youth and several controversial decisions, and Pochettino with the burden of decisions that, in his own words, he carried for weeks before the public announcement.
Sources:
- The Guardian – Pablo Iglesias Maurer's report on Pochettino's explanation of communication with players who did not make the roster (link)
- The Guardian – officially confirmed United States roster for the 2026 World Cup, omitted players and preparation schedule (link)
- U.S. Soccer – announcement of the public presentation of the U.S. national team roster in New York on May 26, 2026 (link)
- U.S. Soccer – Pochettino's earlier statements on player-selection criteria and open competition for the final roster (link)
- FIFA – official information on national-team rosters for the 2026 World Cup and player registration rules (link)