The two players in Germany's top two leagues among newcomers named to the preliminary roster for the March tournament
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U.S. stars in 60-man preliminary rostersLedezma, Maloney notable exceptionsDowns and Banks highlight newcomersFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱Getty Images SportWHAT HAPPENED?
The U.S. men's national team 60-man preliminary roster was announced by CONCACAF on Monday, and there are some notable newcomers. FC Koln's Damion Downs and FC Augsburg's Noahkai Banks, two players who have been linked with the national team in the past, were included.
Downs, who spent part of his childhood in Texas, has broken out with Koln this year, scoring nine goals in the 2. Bundesliga. Banks, meanwhile, has put in several strong performances at centerback for Augsburg in Germany's top flight.
Overall, the roster features nearly all of the notable U.S. stars, from Christian Pulisic to Gio Reyna. There are 25 MLS players on the preliminary roster, headlined by January camp standouts Patrick Agyemang and Diego Luna. Two from Liga MX, Alejandro Zendejas and Cade Cowell, were also included.
Notable exceptions include Richy Ledezma, who recently went on record saying he's waiting to hear from Mexico about a call-up, and Bundesliga midfielder Lennard Maloney, who recently made a transfer to Mainz after impressing at Hoffenheim. Other absences due to injury include Ricardo Pepi, Sergino Dest, Malik Tillman and Folarin Balogun.
U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino has to trim this roster to 23 players by March 10.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesPRELIMINARY ROSTER
Goalkeepers: Drake Callender (Inter Miami), Matt Freese (New York City FC), Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City), Diego Kochen (FC Barcelona), Patrick Schulte (Columbus Crew), Zack Steffen (Colorado Rapids), Matt Turner (Crystal Palace)
Defenders: Noahkai Banks (FC Augsburg), George Campbell (CF Montréal), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Celtic), Marlon Fossey (Standard Liège), Nathan Harriel (Philadelphia Union), DeJuan Jones (Columbus Crew), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse), Shaq Moore (FC Dallas), Jackson Ragen (Seattle Sounders), Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach), John Tolkin (Holstein Kiel), Auston Trusty (Celtic), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC)
Midfielders: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United), Paxten Aaronson (FC Utrecht), Tyler Adams (Bournemouth), Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew), Gianluca Busio (Venezia), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis), Caden Clark (CF Montréal), Luca de la Torre (San Diego FC), Maximilian Dietz (Greuther Fürth), Emeka Eneli (Real Salt Lake), Brian Gutiérrez (Chicago Fire), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake), Jack McGlynn (Houston Dynamo), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Djordje Mihailovic (Colorado Rapids), Matko Miljevic (Huracán), Aidan Morris (Middlesbrough), Yunus Musah (AC Milan), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund), Tanner Tessmann (Lyon), Timothy Tillman (LAFC), Indiana Vassilev (Philadelphia Union),
Forwards: Patrick Agyemang (Charlotte FC), Cole Campbell (Borussia Dortmund), Cade Cowell (Guadalajara), Benjamin Cremaschi (Inter Miami), Damion Downs (FC Köln), Jesus Ferreira (Seattle Sounders), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Josh Sargent (Norwich City), Brandon Vazquez (Austin FC), Tim Weah (Juventus), Brian White (Vancouver Whitecaps), Griffin Yow (Westerlo), Alex Zendejas (Club América)
Getty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE
While more than half of this roster won't make the final cut, it gives a window into what Pochettino views as his national player pool. It also shows which MLS players he views as part of the mix following a pair of January camp wins over Venezuela and Costa Rica.
On the European end, the inclusion of two dual-nationals in Banks and Downs could suggest their inclusion in a USMNT squad as soon as March, although this isn't always an indication of national team futures. Just last year, Esmir Bajrakterovic was included in the USMNT's prelim squad before opting to join Bosnia & Herzegovina.
WHAT NEXT FOR USMNT?
The U.S. is set to kick off their Nations League finals run in a semifinal against Panama on March 20.
