Three US soccer players to know this international break

The US men’s national team returns to action this week, and they’ll do so with a roster chock-full of young stars. A total of 13 players without a senior national team cap could make their debuts in this coming window’s games against Peru, Chile, Mexico and Canada, and most of them are teenagers who might not be on your radar yet.

Well, they should be. I’ll have a fuller piece up on the Guardian later introducing you to the new kids on the squad, but for now here are three of the more interesting players for you to keep an eye on as the international break begins in earnest.

Julian Hall

Forward, Red Bull New York, 18 years old

So unmissable was Hall’s early season form that the Polish federation presented Hall’s mother with a national team jersey bearing her maiden name, Zakrzewski. Hall, a dual citizen, has yet to fully commit to either country, but Poland head coach Jan Urban will be closely counting Hall’s cap tally closely – an appearance in all four friendlies could permanently tie his future to the United States. While his form dipped this summer alongside all of the Red Bulls, Hall’s call felt inevitable thanks to 10 goals and five assists in 2,198 MLS minutes this season.

Thus far in his young career, Hall’s calling card has been his preternatural reading of space and knack for slipping into scoring positions before opponents see it coming. While some center forwards largely stay in the middle of the park and others drift in from a half space to catch a goalkeeper off-center, Hall is happy to flow from sideline to sideline to get involved. From there, his interplay can get him into prime scoring territory: eight of his 10 goals this year have come from shots inside the six-yard box.

Also of note: Hall was named in last year’s Guardian Next Generation list – the next edition of that will be out soon.

Cole Campbell

Winger, SV Elversberg, 20 years old

Campbell first drew attention as part of German Bundesliga side Dortmund’s conveyor belt of dribbly American wingers. A summer move to recently promoted Elversberg has resulted in way more minutes on the field, with Campbell scoring his first Bundesliga goal last month in a win over Bayer Leverkusen. Fitting the Dortmund archetype, Campbell is a direct winger who looks to get past his defensive mark to find dangerous areas in and around the box.

Elversberg manager Vincent Wagner encourages his charges to play without fear, and the Houston native revels in that mentality. In a small sample, Campbell has already shown plenty of initiative to get on the ball in the final third, while looking more inclined to try his own shot than set up a teammate.

Diego Kochen

Goalkeeper, Lyngby (loan from Barcelona), 20 years old

It’s tough to say exactly how Kochen’s first club run-out away from Barça is going, as Lyngby plays in the Danish Superliga – one of many leagues lacking in robust publicly available data. The club, just promoted from the second division, have won just one of nine games to date, conceding 16 goals from 116 shots for a 0.14 rate that’s joint-worst in the league. These are surely among the lumps both Lyngby and Barcelona are willing to let Kochen take as he gets some needed professional seasoning.

Those numbers might not jump off the page, but Kochen’s profile still makes him a tantalizing prospect for a program that has been without an obvious starter in goal since Tim Howard’s retirement a decade ago. The Miami-born Kochen is as comfortable on the ball as any prospect in program history, and already got valuable reps as a training-only member of the World Cup squad. Scouting reports from Europe suggest he’s already proactive about stopping crosses, a good sign considering his slim build. It will be fascinating to finally get an up-close look at what Kochen is all about, should Pochettino give him some minutes.

In which the Guardian staff pick one game each day that we think is worth watching. Broadcast info is for the US and all times are ET. Games for Monday through Wednesday will be covered in our Monday edition of the newsletter.

Thursday: Want to catch up with one of the darlings of the 2026 World Cup? Curaçao returns to action this evening, playing Costa Rica in the Concacaf Nations League in the cozy confines of the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá in San Jose, Costa Rica – one of the most hostile atmospheres in the region. Costa Rica v Curaçao kicks off at 10pm on FS2.

Friday: Can Italy get their national men’s program back on track? If they intend to, the journey starts on Friday with a game against World Cup quarter-finalists Belgium. Roberto Mancini has such a big job on his hands with the Azzurri that he was apologizing on the day he was (re)hired. Italy v Belgium kicks off at 2.45pm on FS2.

Saturday: We can assume if you’ve made it this far that you’ll be interested in the USA v Peru friendly from Orlando at 4.30pm on TNT. But if you’re looking for a split-screen option, check out a big-time Uefa Nations League meeting between the World Cup winners and a semi-finalist. England v Spain kicks off at Wembley at 2.45pm on FS2. Of course, we’ll have live blogs and full coverage of both games on the Guardian (download our app).

Sunday: Cristiano Ronaldo v Erling Haaland? Yes please. The venerable Portuguese comes up against the Norwegian wonder in the Nations League. Norway v Portugal kicks off from Oslo at 2.45pm on FuboTV and Vix.