The adrenalin jolt that accompanies the start of the European club season has long since passed. The weather is getting colder — in most places, anyway — and the grind of the season is very much underway. The ups have given way to downs, or vice versa.

So it goes for members of the U.S. men’s national team. Injuries have piled up, and in some cases, FIFA World Cup dreams are in peril. But others have risen to the challenge, and have considerable momentum behind them.

Throughout the season, ESPN will be monitoring the progress of the player pool, delivering insights into those whose form or fitness has made them particularly intriguing. We call it the USMNT’s countdown to the World Cup.

ESPN will count down to June 11 every week so that way, when the U.S. team is announced for this highly anticipated World Cup on home soil, no names on that 26-man roster will come as a surprise. Only 224 days to go.

2025-26 minutes: 803
2025-26 FotMob rating: 7.1

Adams puts injury issues behind him to remind fans, coaches of his quality

In the not too distant past — just last year, in fact — there were concerns about whether Adams would ever be healthy enough to be much of a contributor to the USMNT this cycle. He underwent back surgery following the 2024 Copa América, this after undergoing hamstring surgery during the previous club season. He made just three league appearances during the 2023-24 campaign, and didn’t make his first appearance in 2024-25 until late October.

But since then, Adams has slowly built up his fitness, making 28 appearances last campaign and, this season, serving as a key contributor to Bournemouth’s rise to an astonishing second place in the Premier League standings after nine matches. Best of all, the midfielder has been on the field for 97% of the minutes in Bournemouth’s league campaign, drawing praise from manager Andoni Iraola for his leadership and consistent play. Now back to his best, Adams figures to transfer that form to the USMNT.

2025-26 minutes: 1,200
2025-26 FotMob rating: 7.3

Will Carter-Vickers’ Achilles injury open door for Trusty?

Even as Celtic have struggled this season, Carter-Vickers was a mainstay, and his call-up last month to the U.S. for the October international window revealed that he was still in contention for a spot on next year’s World Cup roster. That is now in doubt after Carter-Vickers sustained an Achilles injury against Sturm Graz in the UEFA Europa League last week that will require surgery.

The timeline is that he will be out for three to five months, which will put him in a race to be fit for the March international window, though even that timeline might be too aggressive. Carter-Vickers has been on the fringes of the U.S. squad, and being away from the USMNT for that long gives others a chance to step in.

One potential beneficiary is club teammate Auston Trusty. Trusty has been dealing with injuries of his own, but has been on the substitutes bench for Celtic’s past few matches. Last weekend, Carter-Vickers’ replacement, Dane Murray, scored an own goal and conceded a penalty.

It seems like a case of now or never for Trusty.

2025-26 minutes: 624
2025-26 FotMob rating: 6.7

McKennie has to prove himself all over again

For almost the entirety of his time with Juventus, McKennie has been in the position of having to reprove himself every time there is a change in manager. Granted, the man who hails from Little Elm, Texas hasn’t always helped himself in terms of his fitness levels, but he’s typically managed to force his way into the starting lineup at Juve regardless of who the manager was. That was certainly the case under Igor Tudor, who challenged McKennie to improve his nutrition and training habits. When McKennie responded well, his playing time increased.

Now that Tudor is gone, having been fired earlier this week, McKennie finds himself in a position of having to prove himself all over again. His form and fitness, not to mention his versatility, should give him a good starting point, but it’s an uncomfortable situation for a player who rarely is given the benefit of the doubt. One good sign is that under caretaker boss Massimo Brambilla, McKennie went the distance in Wednesday’s 3-1 win over Udinese. Now that Luciano Spalletti — Juve’s fifth manager since McKennie signed for the club in 2020 — has been hired on a full-time basis, McKennie’s challenge is set to really begin.

The in-form XI

U.S. manager Mauricio Pochettino has long said there are no guaranteed spots in his team, but New York City FC goalkeeper Matt Freese appears to be tightening his grip on the starting spot for the USMNT. Not only have Freese’s performances for NYCFC and the USMNT been steady, but among the top contenders, he’s one of the few playing at the moment. The Colorado Rapids‘ Zack Steffen and the New England Revolution‘s Matt Turner both play for clubs who missed the playoffs, meaning they won’t play another competitive match until February. Patrick Schulte is performing with the Columbus Crew, but still looks to be some way behind Freese in the pecking order. Overseas, Ethan Horvath is in danger of losing his starting spot with a Sheffield Wednesday side that is already doomed to be relegated after going into administration and suffering a 12-point deduction.

Suffice it to say, it’s Freese’s job to lose at this point.

It looks like PSV Eindhoven boss Peter Bosz isn’t holding any grudges against defender Sergiño Dest. One week after being benched for showing up late to a UEFA Champions League game against Napoli, Dest was back in the starting lineup for last week’s critical matchup against Feyenoord. While he didn’t get on the scoresheet in what was a 3-2 win, he won 63.6% of his duels — not bad for a player who too often has struggled on the defensive of the ball.

Dest’s performance is enough to get him into this week’s in-form XI, given that Marseille‘s Tim Weah missed Wednesday’s match against Angers with a thigh injury. Marseille manager Roberto De Zerbi said that Weah’s injury was not serious, but is being cautious.

When it comes to the starting striker spot, it seems like every time Folarin Balogun‘s position in a team is challenged, he responds and gets some separation, sometimes all in one game. In AS Monaco‘s match on Wednesday against Nantes, Balogun missed a clear breakaway chance in the 14th minute, when he didn’t even hit the target. Rather than dwell on the miss, though, he made amends later that half, netting just before halftime. It’s the kind of goal that takes a bit of pressure off, even as he was subbed out after 73 minutes.

The same has been true at international level as well. Haji Wright‘s two goals against Australia have put him in the mix for the starting spot, but Balogun’s consistency in the past two windows has provided the Monaco man with considerable momentum. For Pochettino, it’s the best of all worlds. Balogun is getting pushed at both club and international levels, and he continues to deliver.