Injured Folarin Balogun, Tim Weah and Johnny Cardoso out of USMNT squad for October friendlies as Mauricio Pochettino calls in trio of replacements

Folarin Balogun had a bittersweet weekend as he scored a memorable goal for Monaco before later sustaining a shoulder injury. Reports from France say that the injury was "painful" and could keep him out for several weeks, including the upcoming USMNT camp.

U.S. Soccer confirmed on Sunday that Balogun will indeed miss camp, as will Tim Weah and Johnny Cardoso, all because of injuries. Weah was unable to feature this weekend for Juventus as he battled his own injury issues.

Tanner Tessmann, Brandon Vazquez and Alejandro Zendejas have been called in by new coach Mauricio Pochettino as replacements, keeping the squad at 25 players.

This is unfortunate timing, to put it lightly, for Balogun, who surely would have been eager to impress the new coach during this October window. Balogun remains in a tight race at the striker position, one which has really heated up in recent weeks with the three main candidates scoring goals for their clubs.

Balogun has been in fantastic form lately, scoring in three of his last four games to assert himself as the presumed starter. Josh Sargent and Ricardo Pepi are hot on his heels, though, and those two will now have the chance to make up ground in the race during the October camp.

Vazquez, meanwhile, will now get a chance to impress as well, having largely been left out of the main team by former coach Gregg Berhalter.

Weah has been battling injuries since Juventus' season opener, which kept him out of September camp, opening the door for Zendejas' return to the national team.

Tessmann, meanwhile, is fresh off an impressive Olympic run this summer with the U23 squad as he takes Cardoso's spot in the midfield.

Balogun committed to the USMNT in May 2023, making the one-time switch after representing England on the youth level. He's scored five goals in 17 international appearances, including two at this past summer's Copa America.

The U.S. will play two friendlies in mid-October, first hosting Panama in Austin in Pochettino's inaugural game in charge. After that, the team will face Mexico in Guadalajara as the new coach will get a first look at the fiercest rivalry in CONCACAF.