Aaronson Forced Off for Leeds at Brighton With Apparent Leg Issue, 26 Days From USMNT Opener
Brenden Aaronson left Leeds United's Premier League match at Brighton in the 58th minute, struggling with an apparent left-leg issue. The 25-year-old is expected to be in the USMNT 26 that Mauricio Pochettino names on May 26. The United States open the 2026 World Cup against Paraguay on June 12.
U nited States midfielder Brenden Aaronson left Leeds United's Premier League match against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday with an apparent left-leg issue, sparking concerns about his availability for the 2026 World Cup. The 25-year-old went down in the 58th minute and was replaced a minute later, with Leeds medical staff jogging onto the field for manual tests before he limped off toward the bench.
How the injury unfolded
Aaronson had been moving cleanly and was contributing to an attack as late as the 56th minute. By the 57th he was visibly struggling, missing the running edge that typically defines his game. In the 58th he sank to the pitch and called for medical attention. He appeared concerned rather than distraught as he came off, but the body language was enough to put the USMNT staff on alert.
A week before Pochettino names his 26
The timing is sharp. USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino is set to publish his final 26-player World Cup squad on May 26 at a public event in New York, two days after the final round of Premier League matches. Aaronson, who has not been a regular USMNT starter in recent years, is widely expected to make the cut on the back of a relatively productive 2025-26 season at Leeds.
If fit, his profile is the impact-substitute role he played at Qatar 2022, where he came in off the bench to inject energy. If he were to miss the tournament it would be a personal blow rather than a structural one for Pochettino, who has unusually deep cover in the attacking-midfield band of the player pool. The diagnosis from Leeds in the next 24 to 48 hours will set the tone.
Group D opener vs Paraguay on June 12
The United States open Group D against Paraguay on June 12 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, the first match of the tournament on US soil. Australia in Seattle and Türkiye in Los Angeles complete the group. Pochettino has stuck to the same core 26 he used in March friendlies through to the Premier League run-in, which is why a late-cycle injury to a probable squad name lands as a noticeable wobble rather than a routine setback.