USMNT Winners and Losers: Cavan Sullivan's rise continues alongside returning Christian Pulisic as Ricardo Pepi and Tim Weah suffer fresh frustration

The heavy-hitters are back. You know the names: Pulisic, McKennie, Balogun. These are the USMNT's biggest players and, after missing the last camp, all three are in.

With the return of those three, the World Cup XI is nearly complete, save for the retired Tim Ream. After navigating last camp without this key trio, Pochettino now has them at his disposal.

For us on the outside, each comes with a unique storyline, too. Pulisic will be hungry given the nature of the USMNT's World Cup exit and the injury that derailed the start of his season. He'll also be confident, having recently signed a new contract with Milan while adding some goals for good measure. McKennie returns to a crowded fight in midfield and, as a player who tends to raise his level in adversity, he'll likely be ready for that fight. Balogun, finally, is back in search of minutes as his summer transfer saga left him in limbo at Monaco.

"We're happy to see Balo again," Pochettino said, "because, after the World Cup, we didn't have the possibility to see him. It's a great opportunity for him to keep improving his confidence."

All three raise the USMNT's level. It'll be interesting, then, to see what that level looks like when you combine them with the new-look portions of the USMNT squad.

Yunus Musah, Brenden Aaronson, Joe Scally, Mark McKenzie, Tim Weah, Matt Turner, Cristian Roldan - all are players that have been crucial to the USMNT program for years. None are involved this camp. Only Musah was involved in the last one. It's not a full changing of the guard, but the race for places is looking difficult for the veteran incumbents.

Of the names mentioned above, Scally and Weah have the best case for inclusion. Scally is in the best form of his career with Borussia Monchengladbach and is adding new layers to the attacking side of his game. Weah, meanwhile, is captaining a French power in Marseille and starting every week in a wing back role. Neither are included as Pochettino opted to look to Bryan Reynolds as the third right back in the team.

As Pochettino said, none of the above are written off. It is, however, becoming harder to hold down a place. As Pochettino said, there are over 100 players on his radar now and, for many of the 26 that were in the squad this summer, the odds are more against them than ever.

The belief was always that one or two of the teenagers would be in this camp. There ended up being a few more than that.

A total of six of the teenage debutants are in this camp, headlined, of course, by Cavan Sullivan. Given his talent and performance last camp, Sullivan seemed like an obvious inclusion. So, too, did Julian Hall. They didn't arrive alone, though. Fellow goalscorers Justin Ellis and Mathis Albert are back, too, as are Neil Pierre and Adri Mehmeti as well. You can add in Diego Kochen, too, although he's the old man of that group at 21.

Those call-ups come despite the fact that several of their peers will be joining the U.S. U23s for Olympic preparation. The six may return to that group at some point but, for now, they're in the mix with the senior group. It's a real compliment to them that they are, and it's a real sign of how highly Pochettino rates all of them individually.

Still, this isn't a reward, but a test. Now, with more pressure, more stakes and more big names in the team, the teenagers will have to show that they can both fit in and stand out.

"The most important [thing] is the combination and to see the chemistry between them," Pochettino said. "For Christian and Mathis, this is the first time that they are going to be together, or McKennie with Cavan. I think the combinations are something we need to see during the camp. From Monday, we are going to start to see the chemistry on the field, but off the field is very important, too."

An unfortunate injury meant that Ricardo Pepi had to pull out of the last camp. He recently returned from that injury, scoring in a lopsided 7-0 win for PSV.

Yet Pepi isn't in the squad this time. Pochettino explained that it's not just because of his fitness, but because of Balogun's conditioning, too.

"Justin and Julian they are fully fit, so they go a little bit ahead," Pochettino said. "That is why we didn't bring, even if he played a few minutes last week, Ricardo, but I think, to see and assess the players, we decided it would be much better to keep him training and establish himself with being more solid in his fitness and be more confident to attack the future.

"That is why we didn't want to bring both [Pepi and Balogun] because I think both are not 100 percent."

A tough break, then, for a player that has had plenty of those. Fitness has routinely robbed Pepi of crucial opportunities, and it's playing a role here, too. It's a safe bet to assume he'll keep scoring and keep himself in the mix, but with Ellis and Hall involved, the competition for places at the striker spot has increased.

While most of the camp is familiar, there are three new, or at least new-ish, faces. Two are uncapped. One is with Pochettino for the very first time.

Reed Baker-Whiting and Santiago Castaneda are the two players without USMNT experience, and both have earned it with their club play. The former is starring for a Nashville SC running riot through MLS this season. The latter is thriving with Paderborn and making waves in the Bundesliga.

Then there's Bryan Reynolds, who has USMNT experience, but none under the current coach. His performances for Rennes have put him back on the radar for the first time since 2023. All three call-ups are somewhat surprising. All three, though, are earned, too.

"I think they are performing," Pochettino said, "and of course it's good to have different options. I think they deserve the possibility to be with us, for us to feel them, and for them to see how they can fit in our national team."