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Why the best USMNT roster for the World Cup includes forward Alejandro Zendejas originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The journey of Alejandro Zendejas from promising teenaged prospect to the United States men’s national team probably could make for a compelling soccer documentary, as those are becoming increasingly popular on the eve of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Needs a better ending, though.
Although there developed a rugged battle over whether Zendejas would represent the United States or Mexico, he still has earned only 13 caps, most recently when he went 65 minutes and scored a goal in the United States’ exhibition victory last September against Japan.
His teammates on the U.S. squad that competed at the 2015 CONCACAF U-17 Championship, Christian Pulisic and Tyler Adams, have become important players for their European clubs and regulars for the USMNT. Zendejas has won six trophies with Club America, but his phone rarely rings with a call from U.S. Soccer.
That’s a mistake head coach Mauricio Pochettino ought to rectify for this World Cup. If the final 26-man roster released May 26 in New York does not include Zendejas, it will not be the best possible U.S. team.
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Zendejas was born in Ciudad Juarez, Mex., directly across the river from El Paso, but grew up on the U.S side of the border. He became a part of the FC Dallas academy and signed a homegrown contract in 2014 but moved to Chivas two years later at age 18. That club prefers, rather strongly, its players represent Mexico in international competitions. Zendejas agreed to follow that path.
He played some U-21 games for Mexico viewed as prep games for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and later was called up to El Tri exhibitions in October 2021 and April 2022 that led to a FIFA investigation. Zendejas had not filed for the required one-time switch in national team allegiances. Mexico ultimately was ordered to forfeit the matches and pay a small fine. Zendejas rejoined the USMNT in 2023.
He just hasn’t joined them often enough.
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After Zendejas scored that goal against Japan, one-timing a perfect cross from the left side, Pochettino told reporters that performance had given him a lot to think about as he planned for more exhibitions last autumn. He thought so little of it, though, Zendejas hasn’t been back in a U.S. camp since.
He was not missed terribly as the squad won three consecutive games in October and November, but the U.S. certainly could have used his creative spark as they struggled to create chances in March against Portugal and Belgium – and had even greater difficulty converting what few opportunities they had into goals.
Zendejas has been with Club America on a permanent basis for four years and frequently has been lauded as one of the top players in LigaMX. In 123 games – 99 starts – he has scored 35 goals and been credited with 25 assists. He hasn’t scored fewer than 7 goals in any of his full seasons. He can play as a creative midfielder or winger.
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In that Japan game, Zendejas looked ideally suited to the 3-4-2-1 formation Pochettino deployed, lining up on the right side opposite Pulisic and behind Folarin Balogun. All three players earned FotMob ratings higher than 8 in that game – that’s how well the front-3 combination worked. Brendan Aaronson, who might be the chief competition for Zendejas, has been a hard-working player but not as productive or inventive.
Zendejas’ work with Club America also has shown he’s also better equipped than any U.S. player this side of Pulisic to operate in an attacking midfield position – the so-called “No. 10” – so he’s not limited to a single role.
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In the LigaMX playoffs, Zendejas scored three times against No. 1 seed Pumas UNAM and assisted on a fourth goal in the second leg of the two-game series, which led to a 6-6 draw after the two games were complete. Pumas advanced because the tiebreaker in such situations is based on regular-season performance.
That’s the kind of under-pressure effort the USMNT could use if needing a draw or victory in the final minutes of the final group game June 25 against Turkey – or afterward once single-elimination play begins in the Round of 32.
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It would not be unprecedented for a veteran with so few caps to be chosen for an event so grand. When Brad Davis made the USMNT squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, he had appeared in four World Cup qualifiers as a sub and completed his career with 17 appearances. Perhaps a better example, defender Jay DeMerit had appeared in 16 games when chosen for the 2010 World Cup team and started all four games there, including the famous 1-0 victory over Algeria.
Zendejas isn’t likely to be in the lineup when the World Cup opens June 12 against Paraguay. If he needed to be, though, the USMNT still would be well equipped at his position, with a player who can score or create goals. That’s why he needs to be in New York on Tuesday for the roster announcement – and in LA when the real show begins.
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