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A consistent theme has emerged on the eve of Mauricio Pochettino selecting the United States men’s national team’s roster for next month’s FIFA World Cup: Nobody really knows. Pochettino will inform the 26 players who survive the cull this weekend, according to multiple sources briefed on the Argentine’s plans. The ex-Chelsea and PSG boss has previously said he won’t contact the pool of more than 50 players he’s called up during his 20-month tenure at all. Through much of that time, a window far shorter than the full four-year cycle most national team coaches have, Pochettino deliberately obliterated the hierarchy cultivated under predecessor Gregg Berhalter. It was an attempt to both deepen the player pool with hungry youngsters and push veterans who had become too assured of a starting spot. Starters at Qatar 2022, including the likes of striker Josh Sargent and midfielder Yunus Musah have been out of the picture for months. Juventus standout midfielder Weston McKennie was left home for September friendlies against Japan and South Korea, a message to the rest of the veterans that was clear. Pochettino vocalized it anyway. “No one has a place for sure,” he said before that camp began. So is it any wonder that the player pool is on edge right now as a potentially life-changing decision looms? On Thursday, a source close to one of Pochettino’s regulars told me he’s not sure whether elation or anguish awaits. He’s probably not alone. McKennie responded to the September snub with a career-best season. He’s a lock now if he wasn’t then. So is forward Christian Pulisic, despite his career-worst scoring slump with AC Milan, and a few others including midfielder Tyler Adams, fullback Antonee “Jedi” Robinson and center back Chris Richards. That’s assuming Richards is even fully fit following news on Thursday that the defender tore ankle ligaments last week playing for Premier League side Crystal Palace. After that it’s anyone’s guess — and guess they pretty much have to. Because Pochettino has employed the same backroom staff for almost two decades, taking assistant coaches Jesus Perez, Miguel D’Agostino and Toni Jimenez from Espanyol to Southampton to Spurs before stops with PSG, Chelsea and now the U.S. team. Not much leaks out. The coaches all live in Europe. They communicate in Spanish. Compared to the lead up to previous World Cup roster announcements, there’s a dearth of reliable information to be had. Within the span of a few minutes on Thursday night, a source told me one player who most would expect to be picked was hurt and likely out. Unprompted, another texted me the exact opposite; that the player is fine and therefore in. A similar thing happened regarding another veteran. Right now, I don’t have a good sense of where either player stands. “I’m not sure even Gooch knows” who’ll make it, a source told me, referring to acting U.S. Soccer sporting director Oguchi Onyewu. The only thing I can report confidently after a week-plus worth of digging is this: 19-year-old Real Salt Lake sensation Zavier Gozo was included in the provisional World Cup squad U.S. Soccer submitted to FIFA before the May 11 deadline. That list can include up to 55 names, from which the final 26 must be selected. Will Gozo stick when Pochettino makes it official on Tuesday? While my gut says probably not, a hard truth remains: My head really has no idea.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Kevin Harvick remembered Kyle Busch as one of his fiercest competitors. And he also credited Busch, who died suddenly on Thursday at age 41, as one of the sport’s most influential figures. “NASCAR lost one of its true giants, whose impact is almost beyond measure,” Harvick wrote in a post on social media. Harvick, now a FOX Sports analyst, and Busch had much in common, both growing up on the West Coast (Harvick in Bakersfield, Calif., and Busch in Las Vegas) and carrying the competitive desire that nothing else mattered but winning. The two nearly came to blows in a confrontation at Darlington Raceway in 2011. Harvick got out of his car after the race, went over to Busch’s car and took a swing at the window net while Busch drove away and hit Harvick’s car in the process. Busch and Harvick waged fierce battles over the years. Busch had to beat Harvick (as well as two other Champ 4 finalists) in both the 2015 and 2019 championship races, with Harvick finishing just 1.5 seconds behind Busch in 2015. They competed against each other over 20 Cup seasons. Busch sits ninth on the all-time wins list at 63; Harvick is 11th at 60. “Kyle Busch and I spent years pushing each other to the limit,” Harvick wrote. “We raced hard, traded paint and fought for every inch because all either of us wanted to do was beat the other. “What people may not realize is how much that rivalry drove us both. Kyle made me better because you had to be at your absolute best to beat him. Over time, that fierce competition turned into a mutual respect.” They both shared a passion for the sport that went beyond driving. Harvick and Busch both owned teams that raced in NASCAR’s national series. Kevin’s son, Keelan, is a few years older than Busch’s son, Brexton. Both Keelan and Brexton are aspiring NASCAR drivers. “As our careers evolved, so did our conversations,” Harvick wrote. “We talked over building race teams, life beyond the racetrack, and our families, especially raising young sons who want to be racers themselves.” The NASCAR industry mourns the loss of Busch, who is survived by his wife, Samantha, and their children, Brexton and Lennix. “I’m deeply saddened for Samantha, Brexton and Lennix,” Harvick wrote. “There’s nothing that can replace a husband or a father.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports