Tanner Tessmann has been called in for the U.S. men’s national team’s September friendlies.
The 21-year-old will replace Johnny Cardoso on the USMNT roster after the Brazil-based midfielder had to withdraw due to an ankle injury. The U.S. faces Uzbekistan on September 9 in St. Louis, followed by a match against Oman in St. Paul, Minn. three days later.
Tessmann has been ever-present for Venezia in Serie B this season, and scored an 89th minute winner for the club on Wednesday.
Previously, Tessman had just one cap: a 12-minute appearance off the bench against Trinidad and Tobago in 2021. Since then, Tessmann completed a move to Italy, and over the past couple of seasons has progressed from oft-used late-game sub to a regular starter.
Big opportunity for Tessmann
With Tyler Adams missing out as he completes his recovery from a severe hamstring strain, the USMNT squad for this window doesn’t include a natural No. 6.
Gregg Berhalter’s original squad included Cardoso, Benjamin Cremaschi, Luca de la Torre, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah, and Malik Tillman, all of whom normally play as box-to-box or attacking midfielders. The safe presumption for this window was that Musah — who has shown well with the USMNT when stationed in a deeper role — would get two games at the base of the midfield.
However, with Tessmann playing that role at club level, there’s a decent chance that Berhalter could take a look at the Venezia man as an option for a spell in one or both games. Finding another option that could step in for Adams would mean keeping the rest of the team’s midfield intact, with Musah facilitating possession and resisting pressure further forward while McKennie puts in his typically relentless shift.
That said, Tessmann will have to prove himself quickly once camp convenes in St. Louis on Sunday. Berhalter could also look at de la Torre in Musah’s normal role, or play out of a 4-2-3-1 formation to give Tillman minutes as a pure No. 10. Cremaschi, too, is a player that was called in for evaluation, and Tessmann — as a late addition — will have to force the coaching staff to reevaluate whatever their initial plan was to seize his chance.
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