Strike out, or strike it rich: With the injured Folarin Balogun missing from Mauricio Pochettino’s first USMNT camp, which strikers will look to impress?

Injuries are always disruptive and dispiriting, but for those U.S. men’s national team players unable to participate in this specific camp, it will be especially frustrating. Mauricio Pochettino has arrived and he’s ready to rebuild this team. That process begins this week, but he’ll have to do so without several key stars.

Multiple potential starters will be on the outside looking in as the USMNT squad faces Panama and Mexico in the first two matches on Pochettino’s watch. Chris Richards, Tim Weah, Gio Reyna, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Caleb Wiley are among them. Perhaps the biggest absence, though, is Folarin Balogun, a player that seemed poised to take a giant leap forward under the new coach.

That will have to wait. Balogun’s shoulder injury, sustained in the same game in which he scored another goal, halted his progress at the most inopportune time. He was just finding his form for Monaco, scoring three times in his last four games. After a tough start to the season, Balogun was on a roll – and now he’ll join his other injured teammates unable to impress their new coach in person during this camp.

Of course, other players now stand to benefit. There will be multiple strikers in the USMNT squad itching to prove themselves to the new coach and, with Balogun out, they’ll certainly get the chance. Pochettino will get a good look at the rest of the striker pool, and first impressions are always key.

Who will be looking to make those first impressions count? Where do things stand with this striker group in Pochettino’s first USMNT camp? GOAL takes a look

• Getty

  Sargent’s long-awaited opportunity?

  There’s no denying that Josh Sargent deserves a chance. In fact, he’s deserved, like, five of them over the years. Unfortunately for him, every time that opportunity was presented to him, an injury stole it away. Not this time… hopefully?

  Sargent has played just about 30 minutes for the USMNT since the 2022 World Cup, while scoring boatloads of goals on the club level for Norwich. If he was healthy all this time, he’d surely be pushing Balogun for the starting spot already. Instead, he’s a bit behind in the rankings due to the lack of USMNT performances on his resume.

  That can change quickly. Sargent is a striker that Pochettino will love working with, largely because he’s a complete forward. He isn’t necessarily world-class at any one thing, but the Norwich star is skilled at dictating games from the forward position, be it through his scoring or passing. Pochettino will make use of that, and he’ll start doing so this camp.

  • Getty Images

    Pepi train keeps on rolling

    When Ricardo Pepi plays, he usually scores goals. The problem? He doesn’t play enough at the club level.

    The PSV forward has three goals in just 238 minutes this season after scoring seven in 459 minutes last season. That’s an absurd strike rate for just about any player. Those are Erling Haaland-like numbers. The Manchester City star plays legit minutes, though. Pepi doesn’t.

    That’s not to compare Pepi to Haaland, from a pure talent perspective. We won’t compare anyone to him at this point. It’s clear, though, that the 21-year-old American is a talented young goalscorer. PSV haven’t quite been able to unleash him – could Pochettino?

    Pepi has generally fared well in a USMNT shirt despite shockingly being left off the 2022 World Cup roster. Since Balogun’s arrival with the U.S. squad, Pepi had generally been his backup. With an emotional trip to Mexico upcoming for the Oct. 15 friendly, it feels like Pepi will get a chance to show why he can be more than a backup under Pochettino.
  • Getty Images

    Vazquez’s break

    You never want to see a teammate get injured, but in this case, Balogun’s absence could actually work out well for Brandon Vazquez. If Balogun was healthy, Vazquez wouldn’t be here.

    The 25-year-old Monterrey striker has scored three goals this season after hitting double-digits during his first season in Mexico. He got a brief USMNT opportunity in 2023, almost exclusively during the Gold Cup, where he scored three of his four goals.

    Vazquez is different than the other options in camp. He’s a battering ram of a striker, one that could be a weapon off the bench even if he doesn’t start. Because of that, there might just be a USMNT spot for him. There’s value in having a game-changer off the bench, particularly when things go sideways in matches that really matter.

    As a replacement player, Vazquez’s role in this camp is somewhat unclear. It would be nice, though, to see him as a super sub at some point, so Pochettino can get a close look at how he can change a game.

  • Getty

    Chance for Wright?

    He’s played as a winger mostly for club and country recently but don’t forget that Haji Wright is a striker, too. He started in the position at the World Cup and, by a stroke of luck, the only No. 9 to score for the USMNT in Qatar.

    Wright is a proven goalscorer, a player that had a fantastic performance in the Championship last season, cutting in off the wing at Coventry. How will Pochettino view him?

    It’s tough to say, especially with the current lack of options out wide. Injuries in the wing position could force Wright to remain out wide, particularly with all of the other options at striker. Still, he’s someone to keep an eye on during this camp.

    • Getty

      The other goalscorer worth noting

      Strikers are asked to deliver goals but, realistically, no matter who’s up top, the No. 9 isn’t the USMNT’s biggest goal threat. That title belongs to certain AC Milan star, particularly with the remarkable form he’s in.

      Christian Pulisic is central to this equation, especially when taking into account his goal record recently.

      In his last 10 games for club and country, Pulisic has seven goals. That includes a run of five in his last six for Milan and six in his last seven extending back to the USMNT’s draw with New Zealand last month. There aren’t many players in the world scoring at a rate like Pulisic is right now. He’s simply been incredible.

      Pulisic will help shoulder the goalscoring responsibility for the USMNT, no matter who is next to him. He, too, will be eager to impress Pochettino, who is the type of manager that could get even more out of him in a USMNT shirt.

      Pulisic will be extra motivated this camp. So, too, will the strikers, as they look to step up in the wake of unexpected circumstances, and shake up a depth chart that is nowhere near locked in as the 2026 World Cup beckons.