USMNT Roster: Mauricio Pochettino Recalls Surprise Christian Pulisic Replacement

Mauricio Pochettino handed out an olive branch to a few familiar faces for his last U.S. men’s national team (USMNT) roster of 2025, with Gio Reyna one of the most notable returnees to a squad devoid of Christian Pulisic.

The AC Milan forward has been sidelined with a low-grade hamstring injury since pulling up in the first half of last month’s friendly against Australia. Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri revealed that he expects Pulisic to play some role against Parma on Sunday, but it appears as though the Serie A side have been able to agree a deal with the USMNT to let their winger fully recover.

That Reyna has been called upon to fill the void left by Pulisic is something of a surprise. The outspoken Borussia Mönchengladbach player has not been capped since March and has been afforded just one start at club level for a team circling the drain in the Bundesliga.

Leeds United’s Brenden Aaronson has been named in a second successive roster after ending a three-year Premier League goal drought while PSV Eindhoven’s clutch finisher Ricardo Pepi is also back in the fold for the first time in almost exactly one year.

USMNT November 2025 Friendlies

Gio Reyna in action at Borussia-Park. — Gio Reyna is back in the USMNT squad. | Lars Baron/Getty Images

After last month’s encouraging set of performances against Australia and Ecuador, Pochettino will be leading his side against two sides from South America, his home continent. The USMNT begin against Paraguay (ranked 39th in the world) at Philadelphia Union’s Subaru Park home before hosting Uruguay (15th) in Tampa, Florida.