Despite helping AC Milan fight back from a two-goal deficit last weekend, Christian Pulisic won’t be on the United States men’s soccer team’s first roster of the 2030 World Cup cycle, multiple sources told me on Wednesday.
After fracturing two bones in his right leg in the Americans’ 2026 FIFA World Cup-ending 4-1 loss to Belgium in the round of 16, Pulisic was an unused substitute in Milan’s first three games of the 2026-27 Serie A season under new manager Ruben Amorim. But he sparked the Rossoneri’s furious second-half response last Saturday against Lazio after coming off the bench in the eventual 2-2 tie, contributing an assist in 31 minutes off the bench.
Fellow American Yunus Musah was subbed on by Amorim at halftime and is on coach Mauricio Pochettino’s squad, sources said. Musah, 23, started all four games for the U.S. at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar but hasn’t played for his country since March 2025. U.S. Soccer will announce Pochettino’s roster on Thursday for upcoming exhibition games against Chile, Peru, Canada and Mexico.
Sixteen-year-old Cavan Sullivan is also on the USA’s September-October roster, multiple sources confirmed. ESPN was the first to report that the Philadelphia Union phenom will have the chance to become the youngest player in the 113-year history of the USA’s men’s program since Freddy Adu set the record in 2006.
Cavan Sullivan is set to make his USMNT debut. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
Sullivan isn’t the only blue-chip teenager Pochettino summoned; sources said that Red Bull New York midfielder Adri Mehmeti, 17, will also receive his first senior team invitation this month.
Pulisic has been a national team mainstay since making his debut a decade ago. He has 90 caps and 33 goals, fifth on the all-time list. He remains the only American to play in and win a UEFA Champions League final. But the Hershey, Pennsylvania product, who turns 28 on Friday, has had a strained relationship with Pochettino since skipping the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup, which the U.S. narrowly lost to rival Mexico.
Last week, the former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain boss seemed to again criticize that decision, which Pulisic said he made to be ready for this summer’s World Cup. But Pulisic got hurt in the Americans’s World Cup-opening 4-1 win over Paraguay and failed to score in any of the four games in which he appeared. Still, Pochettino had never previously omitted a healthy Pulisic since taking over as U.S. coach two years ago.
While Pulisic’s absence is a surprise, Sullivan’s inclusion isn’t despite his tender age. With five goals and six assists in his last seven MLS games, the Philly native has been one of the most productive players in the domestic league since it returned from its World Cup break. Though he logged just 224 minutes of first-team playing time with the Union during his first two professional seasons, Sullivan won a starting job this year and has played in 23 games overall, scoring six goals — including two Sunday in San Diego — and adding 11 assists. The Union are unbeaten in 10 games, having posted a 8-0-2 record since July 22.
Two years ago, a then-14-year-old Sullivan broke Adu’s record to become the youngest player in the history of major American professional team sports. But Adu still holds the national team record, having made the first of his 17 career senior international appearances against Canada in 2006 at 16 years and 234 days old. Sullivan can’t top that mark; he turns 17 two days after the U.S. meets Peru in Orlando on Sept. 26. He would still be in exclusive company. Only two players besides Adu have been capped before their 17th birthday in the 113-year-history of the U.S. men’s program: Mark Jonas and Mike Slivinski in 199
Pulisic debuted at 17, the same as his longtime USA teammates Musah and Gio Reyna.
After meeting Peru on Sept. 26 in Orlando, the Stars and Stripes will face Chile in St. Louis on Sept. 29, then close out FIFA’s new extended four-match September/October international window early next month against Concacaf foes Mexico (in Glendale, Arizona) and Canada (St. Paul, Minnesota).
