Key events
Pregame reading: Confidence in Pulisic
Mauricio Pochettino is entering the 2026 World Cup with plenty of confidence in his team’s biggest star, even after last summer’s saga that saw Christian Pulisic ask out of national team duty.
Mauricio Pochettino ruffled some feathers after notifying his World Cup snubs that they’d been left off the squad over email.
Pablo Iglesias Maurer wrote about Pochettino’s defense of that decision
And @guardian.soccer spoke to fans about the story:
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Prelude
Well, it’s really real now. The US takes one of its last steps before their 2026 World Cup begins in a matter of hours. Jeff will be along shortly to guide you through.







