Confirmed USA vs Paraguay line-ups for World Cup Group D opener | OneFootball

According to BuLi News, the United States host Paraguay in the Group D opener of the 2026 World Cup, with Mauricio Pochettino handing a start to Bayer Leverkusen attacker Malik Tillman. Borussia Mönchengladbach duo Gio Reyna and Joe Scally are among the options from the bench.

The United States XI features Freese, Freeman, Richards, Ream, Dest, Adams, McKennie, Robinson, Tillman, Pulisic and Balogun, with Ream captaining the side.

Paraguay start Gill, Caceres, G. Gomez, the captain, Alderete, Alonso, D. Gomez, Bobadilla, Cubas, Almiron, Sanabria and Enciso. Former Hertha BSC centre-back Omar Alderete is in the XI after helping newly-promoted Sunderland qualify for Europa League.

The squad also includes seven players with past Bundesliga experience, Chris Richards (FC Bayern and Hoffenheim), Tyler Adams (RB Leipzig), Weston McKennie (Schalke), Ricardo Pepi (Augsburg), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund), Brenden Aaronson (Union Berlin) and Haji Wright (Schalke and Sandhausen).

The United States last lost their World Cup opener in 2006, a 3-0 defeat to Czech Republic in Germany. The nations also met in 1930 when Bert Patenaude delivered the tournament’s first hat-trick in a 3-0 win that sent the United States to the semi-final as the group winner.

Paraguay’s most recent World Cup appearance came in 2010, when they narrowly lost to eventual winners Spain in the quarter-final.

Source: BuLi News