The USMNT January camp is important as Mauricio Pochettino aims for stability in his first year in charge.

The January camp list has been confirmed. And as Mauricio Pochettino begins his first year leading the U.S. men’s national team, this list is an important one. It’s an exciting time for the team and 2025 will see January friendlies against Costa Rica and Venezuela before the Concacaf Nations League and the Gold Cup in the summer are well on their way to 2026.

Unlike in past years, this tournament will all be led by the same manager, rather than rotating between interim and permanent managers overseeing the USMNT. This will give players the opportunity to impress Pochettino and give him an understanding of the depth options within the squad. Due to injuries to key players in the senior side, it is also an opportunity for domestic players to stand out under Pochettino while also learning from experienced players.

Having Tim Lim on the side will help younger defenders like Jalen Neal. Because center back is one of the strong positions in the 2026 World Cup. Diego Luna, Jack McGlynn, Benjamin Kremarski, and Brian Gutierrez are also talented young strikers to watch. Pochettino emphasized that whether someone is in Major League Soccer or overseas, young or old, if they deserve a place based on their play, they will have a chance to make his squad.

This is why this camp is so important. This will be played outside the standard FIFA international break, so it will be a home-based squad without their usual strikers such as Christian Pulisic. Historically, the USMNT hasn’t performed well without its stars, but that’s why these are exciting times. It could be very easy to see a player from this squad making the Nations League squad once things open up again in March.

Previously, the January camp felt like a difficult time to find players who could make the Gold Cup roster but not advance any further, but Pochetnio’s appointment and the level of synergy between the top and bottom of American soccer have made things look a little different. A different feeling. Pochetno’s experience in developing youth players has raised the expectations and quality of his coaching regime. This is also a time when he can show them what they need to do to take the next step in their careers.

Even Jesus Ferreria, who was a USMNT regular under Gregg Berhalter, has had little part in Pochettino’s set-up so far. A good performance in this friendly, coupled with injuries to Josh Sargent and Folarin Balogun, could see him re-emerge into the USMNT’s starting nine.

This is a very exciting time and these players need to show Pochettino that they are ready to take the next step, but opportunities abound in this camp. Despite opposition from Costa Rica and Venezuela, this will provide ample testing as each team has homegrown talent capable of challenging the USMNT. When playing against European nations, the USMNT may field a third-tier squad at best, but this is not the case when facing American nations. This gives us a few more reasons to pay closer attention to the situation this January than usual.