- Position
- M
- Pieces here
- 3
On the record
Called Shots →At least five of the eleven players who start for the United States against Peru on 2026-09-26 are drawn from the thirteen uncapped players named in the federation's 2026-09-17 roster notes (Mathis Albert, Cole Campbell, Justin Ellis, Zavier Gozo, Julian Hall, Diego Kochen, Adri Mehmeti, Peyton Miller, Neil Pierre, Brooklyn Raines, Brian Schwake, Cavan Sullivan, Frankie Westfield). Scored off the published starting eleven for that match. Resolves yes at five or more of those thirteen in the eleven; resolves no at four or fewer.
At least ten of the thirteen uncapped players on the United States fall roster (Mathis Albert, Cole Campbell, Justin Ellis, Zavier Gozo, Julian Hall, Diego Kochen, Adri Mehmeti, Peyton Miller, Neil Pierre, Brooklyn Raines, Brian Schwake, Cavan Sullivan, Frankie Westfield) win a first senior cap across the four friendlies against Peru (09-26), Chile (09-29), Mexico (10-03) and Canada (10-06). A cap is any appearance, as a starter or a substitute, in the official match report. Resolves yes at ten or more, no at nine or fewer, including where a player withdraws from camp before appearing.
At least nine of the eleven players who start for the United States against Mexico on 2026-10-03 held a senior United States cap before the fall window opened, meaning they are not among the thirteen players the federation listed as uncapped on 2026-09-17 (Mathis Albert, Cole Campbell, Justin Ellis, Zavier Gozo, Julian Hall, Diego Kochen, Adri Mehmeti, Peyton Miller, Neil Pierre, Brooklyn Raines, Brian Schwake, Cavan Sullivan, Frankie Westfield). Scored off the federation's published Starting XI. Yes if nine, ten or eleven starters are outside that list; no if eight or fewer are.
Written about him
The U.S. beat Mexico 3-0 with Kochen in goal and Freese on the bench
The United States beat Mexico 3-0 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on October 3, with goals from Julian Hall, Cavan Sullivan and Malik Tillman. Jeff Carlisle of ESPN reported that Mexico had 60 percent of the ball in the first half, and all three goals followed Mexico errors. Mauricio Pochettino started eight players who held a cap before this camp and three who did not: Diego Kochen in goal, Hall at striker and Sullivan beside him. Kochen played the first full match any goalkeeper has played in this window, while Matt Freese, who was in goal when the World Cup ended against Belgium, was an unused substitute and has 45 of 270 minutes. Damion Downs, the one forward capped before camp, has 19. Canada is next on October 6 in St. Paul, and the Nations League quarterfinal follows in November.
Thirteen first caps fit in four friendlies. Thirteen auditions do not
The United States play Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada between September 26 and October 6 with a 28-man roster that the federation's own position list shows holding 13 uncapped players. Under IFAB Law 3, a senior international friendly allows up to eight substitutes, so the bench alone offers 32 appearances across the four matches, and all thirteen could be capped by the end of the Chile match. Starts are the scarce thing: 44 across the window, which splits to 150 minutes per outfield player and one match per goalkeeper if it were shared evenly. The thirteen arrive with very different club minutes. Ten are at half their club's available league minutes or better, and Mathis Albert and Zavier Gozo have 28 league minutes between them. Neil Pierre's 39.7 percent hides that he has played every Philadelphia Union league match since the World Cup break after none before it. Cavan Sullivan, who turns 17 on September 28, started six of the Union's 15 league matches before the break and all 11 since.