Faith in Duncan McGuire, no love for Dynamic Diego Luna: Winners and Losers from the USMNT's Olympic squad reveal

The U.S. are putting faith in McGuire to lead the line this summer. Many assumed one of their overage slots would be handed to a striker, with the Orlando City forward playing second-fiddle, but the U.S. team's trust is now in the 23-year-old.

The lone natural striker on the roster, he will be expected to carry the load as the USMNT look to excel in Paris this summer.

With seven goals and one assist in 19 MLS matches this season, he hasn't had the best of form, but confidence from Mitrovic will be what matters most.

If he performs well, a transfer abroad will surely come, especially after the catastrophe with Blackburn in January that saw his move to England collapse after a paperwork error.

The U.S. will surely regret this one. It's a baffling decision on every possible count, and frankly, disappointing. Luna being excluded from the Olympic roster is more than a head-scratcher - it feels like a genuine mistake.

The most dynamic American attacker in the U23 category playing in MLS, Luna is a unique option on the wing or in a central 10 role. Sitting with the third-most assists in all of MLS, the 20-year-old has five goals and 12 assists in 20 matches this season.

Of all the forwards in the pool selected, he has the highest G+A since the start of the MLS season.

News broke of his exclusion two days prior to Monday's roster announcement, and he responded with his best performance of the year for Real Salt Lake, with three assists and a goal in a thumping of the Houston Dynamo.

Mitrovic claimed that Luna was a player he was heavily considering for the team, but just narrowly missed out.

"He was doing really good - really good with his team. We were very aware of that. Diego was part of our process. And I always say, once you're part of our family, you stay forever part of our family. I'm happy that Diego is performing well because it's great for him, for his team, for his life, for his future," the U.S. boss told AmericanSoccerNow. "However, we had to make final decisions. And, yeah, it was not just Diego but several guys that it was a very difficult decision to exclude them from the roster. But we had to make our decisions and to move forward."

One report surfaced claiming that Luna was selected as an alternate for the roster, but that the winger declined the opportunity. Accurate or not, a player of his capacity should not have been deemed an alternate - he has the quality to be in the XI.

As the youngest player on the roster, the USMNT has a gem in the budding Cremaschi. Just 19, he's age-eligible to still compete in the 2028 Los Angeles summer Games if the opportunity arises.

Playing at the club level alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez at Inter Miami, he has burst onto the scene as one of the brightest prospects in all of MLS. A former MLS NEXT Cup MVP, Cremaschi has experience with the youth national team, and has now been rewarded for his efforts with a spot on the roster for the Paris Games.

He missed the first two months of the MLS season after underoing sports hernia surgery, but returned on April 13 and has been a regular in the XI since the start of May. In nine starts this season, he has three goals and one assist from a central-midfield role, but it remains to be seen how Mitrovic utilizes him with the U23 squad.

The biggest win for U.S. Soccer here, though, is securing Cremaschi's services over Argentina for this summer. A dual-national with La Albiceleste, Cremaschi has opted to represent the U.S. instead of waiting for an opportunity with Argentina.

Mitrovic is buzzing over his inclusion, despite his age.

"Yeah, talking about Benja, he is the youngest player in our group, as you mentioned 2005 (the year he was born) and 2005 are (eligbile) players for the next Olympics. Benja has qualities that fit our team and needs, we also speak about a high-potential player that was part of our MNT roster and like every other player that is in the roster, we are excited to have Benja with us. We know that he can fill out different roles and we talk about a player with a high competitive level," the U.S. coach said. "Even though Benja is the youngest player on our team. He's ready to compete and represent us at the Olympics."

As two very bright domestic products competing in MLS, it's a bummer for both Gutierrez and Bassett to miss out on the Paris Games. Although Gutierrez hasn't quite had the spectacular season many expected, he's widely-considered to be one of the most exciting attacking midfielders in the pool.

Bassett, meanwhile, has had one hell of a season so far for the Colorado Rapids. With six goals and three assists on the campaign, the midfielder has excelled from the middle of the pitch for the Western Conference side. As with Luna, it's been reported he was offered an alternate role, but declined.

One could argue that both he and Luna deserved nods in the team, but unfortunately, neither will feature in Paris this summer.

After missing out on the 2022 FIFA World Cup due to injury, Robinson has had a tough go of it on the international stage. He has 29 career caps, and even recently appeared in the CONCACAF Nations League semifinals against Jamaica in March. However, he didn't get a lick of game time during Copa America in June. He was pushed to fourth-string, behind Tim Ream, Chris Richards and Cameron Carter-Vickers.

Now, however, his efforts are being rewarded, with an overage selection for the Olympic Games.

He's been lights-out at the club level with FC Cincinnati this year, and has deservedly been given the nod. He has valuable experience in USMNT camps with fellow overage selection, Walker Zimmerman, who had high praise for his soon-to-be central defender partner in Paris.

"Yeah, I'm super happy for Miles," Zimmerman said. "You know, he's someone that we have a lot of experience playing together with. Probably for both of us, we have the most caps alongside one another. And, you know, to see what he went through after World Cup qualifying, having an injury that he did - missing out on a World Cup - I'm so happy for him to be back and have the opportunity on the world stage to represent the United States.

“I know he's absolutely ecstatic to be coming along with this group. It's such a fun young group of guys. I think he's gonna fit right along and it's been fun keeping in touch with him. I'm excited to be alongside him. I think it'll be really, really fun pairing and one that I have the utmost faith in."

Bringing just one striker to a tournament is a bold decision. Genuinely, it feels like the biggest risk the USMNT is taking. Mitrovic confirmed to media Monday that Paxten Aaronson is seen as the backup striker for the team this tournament, but frankly, that's nothing to be excited about. He's primarily a winger and an attacking midfielder, and not having a second-string option could prove to be costly.

Despite U.S. Soccer's requests that they be available for the Olympics, Haji Wright, Malik Tillman and Ricardo Pepi were denied by their clubs - which isn't great either.

Limitations of an 18-person roster have their issues, but there are still safeguards you can put in place to ensure a well-rounded and effective roster is assembled.

The forward position is a problem on paper. Whether or not it becomes a problem on the pitch remains to be seen.