Christian Pulisic and Michael Bradley have both been ruled out of the upcoming CONCACAF Nations League matches against Canada and Cuba.
U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter named his 23-man roster on Monday, and while initially there was some hope that Pulisic might still take part, the hip injury he picked up in Chelsea's 2-0 win over Crystal Palace has prevented him from participating. Bradley sustained an ankle injury playing for Toronto in Sunday's MLS Cup final loss to the Seattle Sounders, thus ruling him out.
"Christian is officially at this stage ruled out" Berhalter told reporters on Monday. "We just got that information. This was a collaborative decision with the club, looking after the best interest of the player. These decisions are always difficult because this group and the coaching staff want nothing more than to have Christian here, but it was a risk we weren't willing to take at this time."
The U.S. will play Canada at Orlando's Exploria Stadium this Friday (live at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2), with the match against Cuba set to take place in George Town, Cayman Islands four days later. The U.S. must win both games while making up a three-goal differential on Canada in order to progress to the semifinal round of the competition.
Earlier, Berhalter said in a press release: "Advancing to the knockout phase is our priority, and that starts by getting a win against Canada. We will be ready to play, the team is looking forward to competing in front of our fans. Orlando has been a great venue for the national team, and the support of our fans makes a big difference."
The loss of the in-form Pulisic -- who has scored five goals in his last three league matches -- cuts especially deep given the overall dearth of creativity in the squad. It will be up to the likes of Weston McKennie, Sebastian Lletget, Paul Arriola and Josh Sargent to pick up the slack.
The injuries come on the heels of Fortuna Dusseldorf goalkeeper Zack Steffen having to pull out of the squad due to knee tendonitis.
The Seattle Sounders MLS Cup-winning duo of Cristian Roldan and Jordan Morris is included while Real Salt Lake winger Corey Baird and Minnesota United defender Chase Gaspar have departed camp.
Ajax defender Sergino Dest, a dual national who recently pledged his international future to the U.S., is also in the squad.
Full U.S. Roster:
Goalkeepers (3): Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC), Sean Johnson (New York City FC), Matt Turner (New England Revolution)
Defenders (9): John Brooks (Wolfsburg), Reggie Cannon (FC Dallas), Sergino Dest (Ajax), Nick Lima (San Jose Earthquakes), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls), Daniel Lovitz (Montreal Impact), Tim Ream (Fulham), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United), Walker Zimmerman (LAFC)
Midfielders (6): Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy), Weston McKennie (Schalke), Alfredo Morales (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC), Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes)
Forwards (5): Paul Arriola (D.C. United), Tyler Boyd (Besiktas), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Josh Sargent (Werder Bremen), Gyasi Zardes (Columbus Crew SC)