'He doubled down on himself' - Eric Wynalda backs Seattle Sounders veteran Christian Roldan as impact player for the USMNT ahead of the 2026 World Cup

Roldan earned USMNT callups during the September and October windows after strong club performances for Seattle. That steady availability and the habit of producing at a high level have impressed Wynalda.

“MLS, for all that it is, isn’t the best way to prepare for a World Cup,” Wynalda said on Golz Tv. “Now that leads me to the real question. And it really is personified at the moment by Cristian Roldan. I’ve seen it a couple of times with players that play in the MLS, they get absolutely lambasted by our fanbase. And there’s a bunch of hate out there…

"First lets start with this: nobody pays anybody $1.4 million if they suck at whatever they do. Cristian Roldan is making that much money to play soccer as a professional for Seattle, which all things being equal, MLS with all its flaws is willing to pay that guy handsomely. Because he’s not a bad player, he just isn’t.”

Wynalda framed the issue as one of temperament. He said Roldan’s personality and mentality make him less likely to be overwhelmed by the sudden jump in intensity.

“I was reading all the hate and I was like ‘Man this guy’s really catching it. Let’s see how he reacts to that.'" Wynalda said. "But this really was his opportunity. And very seldom have we seen somebody grab their opportunity the way he did... At the end of the day, he’s probably going to make the USMNT roster, and here’s why. He’s a good guy. He’s a really good human being and that may not matter to you as much as you think but it actually does.

"And it matters a lot to that locker room because Mauricio Pochettino knows that if he’s going to build this team, he’s going to have to build it around stars. But you've got to go through the process of thinning this herd. The process is not selecting the best players, it is eliminating the ones that can’t do it and a couple of guys have eliminated themselves from that process. And Cristian Roldan is not one of those people.”

Roldan’s path into Pochettino’s plans is shaped by a crowded midfield and the coach’s preference for players who combine tactical discipline with physical reliability.

"He doubled down on himself," Wynalda said of Roldan. "That attitude that he brings is priceless. It’s worth a helluva lot more than $1.4 million, let me tell you that. Because the good news with Cristian Roldan is yes, he can handle it. Yes he can handle a World Cup stage, he can. That’s really important to know. There’s been guys in the past who we thought could and then didn’t. Ricardo Clark stands out, he got substituted in the first-half against England, it was that bad.

“That’s not going to happen with Cristian Roldan for all the reasons that I just stated. And he has the confidence in himself that he can do this. And I’ll tell you this, if in the event he does get out on the World Cup stage, 1) it’ll mean the world to him; and 2) his teammates will have his back. Because he has had theirs all this time, waiting for his chance to play.”

Roldan’s immediate task is to sustain strong performances for Seattle and to translate those club displays into continued value in national team camps. The Sounders qualified for the MLS playoffs and will face Minnesota United in the first round.