Fore-warned: Poch tells USMNT to forget golf clubs

United States coach Mauricio Pochettino set some expectations ahead of the team's return to action at this summer's Concacaf Gold Cup after a disastrous fourth-place finish at the Nations League in March.

One message: Leave the golf clubs at home.

"If you arrive to the camp and you want to spend nice time, play golf, go for a dinner, visit my family, visit my friend, that is the culture that we want to create?" Pochettino asked out loud Thursday during a Zoom news conference after announcing his 27-man roster. "No, no, no, no, no. What we want do is to go to the national team, arrive and be focused and spend all my focus and energy in the national team.

"If we want be good in one year time, we need to think that today is the most important day."

The Americans will be in camp ahead of a busy summer, which includes a pair of friendlies against European heavyweights Turkey and Switzerland in early June and then the Gold Cup, which goes from June 15 to July 7.

Christian Pulisic is among a slew of regular starters who won't be there. The U.S. captain is getting some needed rest after a busy season with AC Milan. Timothy Weah, Weston McKennie and Giovanni Reyna aren't in the squad either, as all three will be playing with their teams at the Club World Cup, which runs concurrently with the Gold Cup.

Sixteen of the players picked are from MLS, the most in a FIFA window since the U.S. sent a B team to the 2023 Gold Cup, and Pochettino hopes the absence of some of the team's star players will give others the chance convince worried fans a turnaround is ahead.

"It's our responsibility to send some signal to them," Pochettino added. "I think our fans need to see our team fighting and playing and performing and playing well, yes, but fighting for the flag and being always in every single game [to] match the aggressivity of the opponent."

Pulisic, the top American player, asked to be left off the roster for the last competitive matches before the 2026 World Cup in order to rest after playing about 120 games for club and country over two seasons.

Yunus Musah also asked out and Antonee Robinson was dropped because he has been playing with an injury. Josh Sargent, Joe Scally, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Tanner Tessmann -- all of whom just finished their seasons with clubs in Europe -- were omitted in what Pochettino called "football decisions."

U.S. Soccer Federation sporting director Matt Crocker said Pulisic and his advisers asked for the possibility to be left off because of the amount of games he has played in the last two years.

"Many people can say it's really important for us to be all together for the last time before the World Cup," Pochettino said. "We decided the best for him, the best of the team, the best for the national team is the decision that we made."

Pochettino replaced Gregg Berhalter after the team's group-stage elimination at the Copa América last summer. After the Gold Cup, he will have just four brief training windows on FIFA international dates before players report ahead of the World Cup.

In the team's first significant test under Pochettino, the Americans lost to Panama and Canada in the Nations League in March. Without saying players had been complacent, Pochettino said "we learned a lot in the last few camps, for sure in March, and it's about to be -- maybe use a different way to approach these opportunities."

Outside back Sergiño Dest returns to the national team for the first time since March 2024 after recovering from a torn ACL. Forward Folarin Balogun is with the team for the first time since last September following his recuperation from shoulder surgery.

Pochettino's roster included Alex Freeman, a son of former NFL All-Pro receiver Antonio Freeman. The 20-year-old right-back made his MLS debut for Orlando City SC in April 2023 -- his only league match that season. He had two MLS appearances last year and has become a regular this season.

Midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, a 24-year-old son of the former coach, also was picked for the first time along with 20-year-old forward Damion Downs and 21-year-old defender Quinn Sullivan, the older brother of and teammate of Philadelphia Union teen prodigy Cavan.

Downs has played on youth teams of Germany and the U.S., and helped Cologne gain promotion to the Bundesliga for 2025-26 after a one-season absence.

Goalkeeper Matt Freese, who has attended national team camp previously but not played in a game, also was selected.

Players will start reporting June 1 for training in Chicago, and the 26-man Gold Cup roster is due June 4. The U.S. plays Turkey on June 7 at East Hartford, Connecticut, and Switzerland three days later at Nashville, Tennessee, then meets Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi Arabia and Haiti in the group stage of the Gold Cup.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this story.