Atletico Madrid midfielder Johnny Cardoso was selected for the USMNT call-up for March 2026. After a decent stint so far in La Liga, has the 24 year-old earned enough to be featured on the main USMNT line-up of the future?
The American has had an up and down season with Atletico Madrid so far. He has faired well in most appearances, his main highlight being scoring against Tottenham in the Champions League.
However he had a woeful match against Real Madrid in the recent La Liga match. He received a yellow card and was dispossessed in his own half which led to his team conceding a penalty. He was subsequently taken off in a triple substitution. This is the performance USMNT fans have dreadfully expected out of Cardoso for his national team.
As for his history with the USMNT, Johnny Cardoso has been primarily viewed as a disappointing midfielder for the States. He is often on the bench and does not play exceptionally well. He has conceded many goals under his 7 starts, and was substituted in matches when the result was almost complete. So far under Pochettino, he has only finished one complete game. So who does Johnny need to outperform to gain more minutes under the Argentine manager?
For competition in the National team squad, he has defensive midfielder Tyler Adams. The consistent Bournemouth starter is renowned as a decent Premier League player despite some inconsistent performances. He wasn’t called up for the March Friendlies due to concerns of worsening an injury.
Another rival for Cardoso, Yunus Musah has struggled for gametime with Atalanta. This is the primary reason Pochettino has not called up the young midfielder. Cardoso is generally regarded as being better than Musah for USMNT as of recent times.
Sebastian Berhalter, son of former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter, has also been called up. Despite recent USMNT controversies, he is in a similar boat as Cardoso, as he has to prove himself in the USMNT training camp this month, and the International friendly against Belgium.
Other players fighting for Cardoso’s spot include Weston McKennie, and Malik Tillman. McKennie has been a primary starter for the USMNT for many years now, while Tillman, having an above average season with Leverkusen, was a key performer in recent USMNT tournaments such as the CONCACAF Nations League in 2024.
former USMNT player Stu Holden believes immensely in Cardoso and that he can regroup himself after recent disappointments with the national team. He stated:
“I just don’t see a world in which Johnny is not called up for these March friendlies, You have to give him one more look. And I know there’s this constant debate about the weight of the [U.S]shirt at times has looked too heavy for Johnny Cardoso. He’s been great with his club. But it’s a guy playing every week and scoring now in the Champions League, he deserves one final chance with the U.S in March to prove to Mauricio Pochettino that he can be in that roster for the World Cup.”
– FOX analyst Stu Holden
Stu’s vision for Cardoso being called up has been proven correct, but it’s the performances now that will determine if Cardoso is truly fit for the U.S jersey.
Overall, the support for Johnny Cardoso has been mixed from the USMNT camp. Some even joked that since he grew up in Brazil, there might be some magical talent coming up on his performance. Others are still skeptical whether his recent club record can be transferred to the USMNT squad, or that he will be much of the same. It will all be answered in the March friendlies.
