USMNT vs. Paraguay: What to expect from key World Cup test

The United States Men's National Team will take on Paraguay in an international friendly on Saturday in Chester, Pennsylvania.

With expected World Cup starters like Christian Pulisic, Antonee Robinson and Chris Richards sidelined with injuries, this match will serve as a chance for coach Mauricio Pochettino to test his team's depth. He aims to push his lesser-known players into the spotlight against Paraguay to create some healthy roster competition.

"The players that are here today deserve to be here, are players we want to see, are the players that are our choice, our selection," Pochettino said. "No one can feel safe."

With a wildly different lineup than the one that went undefeated in October against Ecuador and Australia—and a rapidly improving foe in Paraguay—what can we expect from Pochettino's USMNT in this match?

USMNT's triple-threat offense

The USMNT needs a solid striker. It's been an endless refrain since Chris Wondolowski and Clint Dempsey hung up their boots nearly a decade ago. Years of searching yielded few options, but finally, the USMNT doesn't just have one solid striker: it has three.

Coventry City's Haji Wright, AS Monaco's Folarin Balogun and PSV's Ricardo Pepi all enter this match fit and healthy for the first time in 2025. They won't all start together, but the combination of their different skill sets will help the USMNT win games it previously struggled to unlock. 

"You need three strikers always," Pochettino said. "You need to have the capacity to change the game sometimes if you are not doing well, and strikers are very important."

The U. S. Women's National Team won Olympic gold in 2024 off the strength of its "Triple Espresso" striker trio of Mallory Swanson, Sophia Wilson and Trinity Rodman. Wright, Balogun and Pepi can provide a similar lift on the men's side.