THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL team has already had to make a three changes to its Nations League roster ahead of the semifinal against Panama on Thursday. Johnny Cardoso, Auston Trusty, and Antonee Robinson were dropped and replaced by Jack McGlynn, Max Arfsten, and Brian Gutierrez.

Overall, the removal of Trusty and Cardoso was not surprising as both players were forced to miss their club matches over the weekend. The removal of Robinson, however, comes as a surprise as he has been healthy.

Cardoso limped off the field in the 80th minute of a March 9 game for Real Betis while Trusty had a calf injury that forced him to miss Celtic’s Old Firm loss on Sunday. The issue for Robinson, however, is unspecified.

Here are some thoughts on the changes.

Robinson’s removal is significant

The biggest change on the USMNT roster is Robinson’s removal due to the unspecified issue. The Fulham captain and left back is one of the best USMNT players and was even named U.S. Soccer’s Male Player of the Year for 2024. But that loss in talent is only part of the problem. The other part of the problem is that the team has been struggling to find a backup left back for years.

Gregg Berhalter, to his credit, tried hard. He tried George Bello, Sam Vines, Kristoffer Lund, Dan Lovitz, and other options such as switching right backs Sergino Dest and Joe Scally over to that side.

The early returns of Pochettino point to the fact it hasn’t been much of a concern for him to find backup fullbacks. When asked, he’s seemed more inclined to move midfielders, wingers, and centerbacks to the fullback positions if needed. He points to the fact that Yunus Musah has played right back for Milan on occasion, Tim Weah mostly plays right back for Juventus, Tim Ream plays left back for Charlotte, and Weston McKennie has played both fullback positions for Juventus.

It would not be surprising (to me at least) if once Dest is fully back, a fullback trio of Robinson, Scally, and Dest is all he deems necessary. But for this roster, he is now left with only Scally.

Here are some of the most likely options Pochettino has for the Nations League with regards to fullbacks.

• Switch Scally to left back, start Weah, Musah, or McKennie at right back.
• Keep Scally on the right side, start Ream, Arfsten, or McKennie at left back.

It is true that switching Scally to the left back opens the door to playing Weah at right back (where he plays most of the time for Juventus), but that forces changes all throughout the roster. Moving Weah out of the wing means that Pochettino must then replace Weah at winger, and the team is also short on wingers.

Also, any chance of moving Musah or McKennie to fullback also forces changes in the midfield because there is a good chance that Musah and McKennie are starters there. Then with Cardoso being a top midfield replacement for them, it requires more distant options.

By far, the most likely scenario is that Pochettino is going to opt to keep Scally at right back and replace Robinson in the starting lineup either with the old but experienced Ream who is a centerback first, left back second or with the younger but experienced Arfsten whose background as a winger makes him more of an offensive option. But yet another drawback with Ream at left back is that Pochettino still might prefer him in central defense.

Given that this is Pochettino’s first chance to win a trophy, Ream is the safer bet with Arfsten being a good bench option if the team needs to push forward for a goal. But there is also the chance that Pochettino rotates Arfsten and Ream given the tall ask of having Ream start two games at left back on short rest. 

If that is the case, a good option could be Arfsten starts against Panama in the first game and Ream starts in the second game.

No matter what, this could be one of the best opportunities of Max Arfsten’s career. He’s been underrated by many and has played a big role in the Columbus Crew’s success. Moving forward, there are other left back options emerging. Caleb Wiley and John Tolkin are trying to push through (with both having only recently returned from injuries) and they might have future looks. But if Arfsten can get on the field, it might be his only opportunity to make a statement this cycle.

McGlynn & Gutierrez for Cardoso & Trusty

The other roster changes are a little more straight up. Trusty was one of five central defenders on the roster and was not replaced with a centerback – likely because versatility was needed elsewhere.

Gutierrez makes sense as an attacking midfielder who can also play as a winger. If Weah needs to shift to right back, or if Gio Reyna’s fitness isn’t ideal, Gutierrez can fill in at either role.

Meanwhile, McGlynn had a good camp in January and while he is limited defensively, he is a good passer from distance and a good shooter from outside the box. He only makes sense as a starter if there is plenty of defensive support in the midfield – which there might be with Tyler Adams, Weston Mckennie, or Tanner Tessmann.

But the removal of Cardoso is a setback for the New Jersey-born midfielder. His club resume is getting better and better every month and he is in a great position in his career. Unfortunately for him, he is one of several players in the pool that is yet to having club success translate to the USMNT. Malik Tillman and even Josh Sargent (who hasn’t scored for the USMNT since 2019). He will get more chances, but at some point, that needs to happen.

Who wasn’t added

Pochettino didn’t add players who have only just returned from injury. John Tolkin subbed into a Holstein Kiel loss late over the weekend and it was his first appearance in a month. Caleb Wiley is also still playing only bench minutes for Watford, and that probably ruled him out. Players like Dest and Haji Wright didn’t even make the preliminary roster despite recently returning because their absences were long-term.

The more surprising names that weren’t called up were Aidan Morris and Alejandro Zendejas. Morris is based in England and the shortness of this camp probably worked against him. Zendejas is probably the biggest surprise to not be added but Pochettino obviously likes what he seeds with Gutierrez. Zendejas has been playing extremely well for Club America in recent months, but he might have been hurt with the fact he has struggled with the USMNT since he committed to the program after the 2022 World Cup. 

Potential cap-tying

The decision for Jack McGlynn and Brian Gutierrez to accept these call-ups is significant because both had realistic options to play for other nations. Ireland had been in contact with McGlynn and Mexico was rumored to be watching Gutierrez. If either players participates in these games, they will be cap-tied to the United States.

It’s always good to see players push forward with countries where they truly spent most of their lives (for Gutierez and McGlynn, the United States is where they spent all of their lives). It might be a harder road to make the team, but both players are still young where they have multiple cycles to try to push through.