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The USMNT will play its first game since the 2026 World Cup today as it hosts Peru for one of its four friendly matches this international break.
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The match against Peru will be coached by Mauricio Pochettino, who has now been in charge for two years. Pochettino will stay with the USMNT after signing a contract extension that keeps him through the 2030 World Cup cycle.
In the 2026 World Cup, the USMNT reached the Round of 16 but were eliminated by Belgium. A couple of players who played in the World Cup for Team USA are returning to the squad today against Peru, except for a few big names, including Christian Pulisic.
Pulisic played four games for the USMNT in the World Cup, and in the match against Belgium, the USMNT winger was taken off in the 59th minute due to an injury.
Pulisic is not in the starting XI or on the bench for the friendly match against Peru today.
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Is Christian Pulisic Injured?
Christian Pulisic is not injured; that is not why he is unavailable for the USMNT today. Pulisic was not called up by the USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino.
Pulisic’s absence from the squad surprised some fans, as other players who played in the World Cup were selected. Pochettino decided to bring many young players into the USMNT squad for this September-October international break.
Pochettino did not give a specific reason for leaving Pulisic out of this camp. When asked about Pulisic, Pochettino said he focused on the players selected rather than those left out.
Pochettino said, “After the World Cup, we started to see and analyze all the players, potential players for this camp. Like I always say, I think the 28 players that are going to be involved in these four games, for different circumstances, are the best players that we want to see and we want to work on, and that’s it.”
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This story was originally published September 26, 2026 at 1:15 PM.