Forwards Gio Reyna and Jordan Pefok and goalkeeper Ethan Horvath are back on the U.S. team for the first time since September, among eight additions on the 27-man roster announced Thursday for the final three World Cup qualifiers that start next week.
Three defenders are on the roster who missed the winter qualifiers: Aaron Long returns for the first time in a year after recovering from a torn Achilles tendon; defender Erik Palmer-Brown could make his first international appearance in four years; and James Sands is back for the first time since September.
Midfielder Gianluca Busio returns after a positive COVID-19 test caused him to be dropped in January.
Dortmund's Giovanni Reyna runs for the ball during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Arminia Bielefeld in Dortmund, Germany, Sunday, March 13, 2022. (AP PhotoMartin Meissner)
Three players missed out because of injuries: midfielder Weston McKennie (broken foot); defender Chris Richards (ankle); and goalkeeper Matt Turner (foot/ankle).
Five others from January also were left off: forward Gyasi Zardes, midfielder Sebastian Lletget, defenders Brooks Lennon and Mark McKenzie, and backup goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina.
Defender Sergiño Dest, a roster mainstay, limped off in the 56th minute after grabbing a hamstring during Barcelona's Europa League match at Galatasaray on Thursday.
Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Ethan Horvath celebrates at the end of the English FA Cup fifth round soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield Town, at the City Ground, in Nottingham, England, Monday, March 7, 2022. Nottingham won 2-1. (AP PhotoRui Vieira)
Seeking to return to the World Cup after missing the 2018 tournament, the U.S. is at Mexico on March 24, hosts Panama three days later at Orlando, Florida, and closes at Costa Rica on March 30. Training starts Monday in Houston.
Canada leads North and Central America and the Caribbean with 25 points and the U.S. is second with 21, ahead of Mexico on goal difference. Panama is fourth with 17 points, followed by Costa Rica with 16 and El Salvador with nine.
The top three nations earn berths for this year’s tournament in Qatar and the fourth-place nation advances to a playoff in June against the Oceania champion, likely New Zealand.
Seventeen players are Europe-based and 10 from Major League Soccer.
Reyna, a son of former U.S. captain Claudio Reyna, was hurt in the opening qualifier at El Salvador on Sept. 2 and was sidelined until Feb. 6. He injured a leg two weeks later while playing for Borussia Dortmund in his first club start in six months, then returned with second-half appearances Sunday and Wednesday.
Pefok appeared in the first two qualifiers, then was dropped. He is the Americans’ most in-form forward with six goals in his last seven club games, raising his Swiss league-leading total to 17 goals. He has 22 goals overall this season.
Among the other forwards. Ricardo Pepi has not scored in 17 matches for club and country since getting a pair of goals against Jamaica on Oct. 7 and Jesús Ferreira has not scored in 11 matches for club and country since Oct. 30. Jordan Morris scored for Seattle on Saturday against the LA Galaxy, his first goal since Nov. 24, 2020, three months before he tore his left ACL.
Horvath was on the bench in September, then was dropped but has gained the starting job at Nottingham Forest and helped his club to four wins and two draws in its last six matches.
Steffen has not played for Manchester City since Feb. 5 due to back and shoulder injuries and dressed Monday for the first time since Feb. 9. He was on the initial January roster and then dropped.
Turner has not played a competitive match since the qualifier against Honduras at St. Paul, Minnesota, on Feb. 2. He injured an ankle on Feb. 9, according to New England coach Bruce Arena.
Long has not appeared for the national team since last March 28. He tore his right Achilles tendon on May 15 and returned this season with the New York Red Bulls, starting the first three matches.
Midfielder Tyler Adams, Steffen, defender DeAndre Yedlin and winger Tim Weah carry yellow cards and would be suspended for one match with another.
Defenders John Brooks and Tim Ream appear to be out of contention for the World Cup roster after not being selected since September.
The roster:
Goalkeepers: Ethan Horvath (Nottingham Forest, England), Sean Johnson (New York City), and Zack Steffen (Manchester City, England).
Defenders: Reggie Cannon (Boavista, Portugal), Sergiño Dest (Barcelona, Spain), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls), Erik Palmer-Brown (Troyes, France), Antonee Robinson (Fulham, England), Miles Robinson (Atlanta), James Sands (Glasgow Rangers, Scotland), DeAndre Yedlin (Miami), and Walker Zimmerman (Nashville).
Midfielders: Kellyn Acosta (Los Angeles), Tyler Adams (RB Leipzig, Germany), Gianluca Busio (Venezia, Italy), Luca de la Torre (Heracles, Netherlands), Yunus Musah (Valencia, Spain), and Cristian Roldan (Seattle).
Forwards: Brenden Aaronson (Red Bull Salzburg, Austria), Paul Arriola (Dallas), Jesús Ferreira (Dallas), Jordan Morris (Seattle), Jordan Pefok (Young Boys, Switzerland), Ricardo Pepi (Augsburg, Germany), Christian Pulisic (Chelsea, England), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund, Germany), and Tim Weah (Lille, France).
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