Sports Illustrated Ranks 5 USMNT Striker Options Before 26-Man World Cup Squad Reveal
Updated
Updated · Sports Illustrated · May 22
Sports Illustrated Ranks 5 USMNT Striker Options Before 26-Man World Cup Squad Reveal
5 articles · Updated · Sports Illustrated · May 22
Tuesday’s 26-man squad reveal has sharpened focus on a small USMNT striker pool, with Sports Illustrated ranking Folarin Balogun, Ricardo Pepi and Haji Wright as the leading options.
Balogun tops the list after 19 goals and five assists in 43 games for Monaco, plus three goals in the national team’s last eight matches, making him the clearest lock at the position.
Pepi ranks second despite a broken arm that cost him nine games; he still produced 19 goals and two assists in 1,706 minutes for PSV, while Wright’s 17 league goals helped Coventry win promotion.
Brian White and 18-year-old Julian Hall round out the top five on MLS form—White with eight goals in 13 games, Hall with nine goals and two assists in 14—but both are framed as longer-shot picks.
Mauricio Pochettino already has a 55-man preliminary list and is expected to settle on only a few forwards as he weighs form, injuries and whether the U.S. uses a 4-2-3-1 or 3-5-2.
Will the USMNT gamble on an uncapped 18-year-old striker for the World Cup?
With World Cup hotel bookings below forecasts, are U.S. host cities facing an economic bust?