"He just told me to be myself. He knows that being myself has got me to this point. So why change that?" Alex Freeman said, days before he is expected to make his World Cup debut in front of family at SoFi Stadium.
Freeman, 21, is likely to start Friday, June 12, for the U.S. men’s national team in its 2026 World Cup opener against Paraguay, a rapid climb from barely playing in MLS at the start of last year to a spot on soccer’s biggest stage. The 6-foot-2 defender’s family is in the Los Angeles area as he prepares to step onto the field.
The claim the moment rests on more than roster talk. Freeman made his USMNT debut in June 2025 and played in 16 of the team’s next 17 games. Christian Pulisic, a veteran leader in camp, offered an emphatic appraisal: "Alex, he's a beast, man," and added, "I think he's done such a good job, just his overall presence and what he brings, not even just physicality and athleticism, but he's made some good forward progression with the ball and played good balls in behind." Pulisic also said, "I feel like he seems a lot calmer, and I like what I've seen from him."
Those endorsements help explain why Freeman has moved from promising prospect to likely starter in a tournament opener. He broke out with Orlando City after barely playing in MLS a year earlier, then transferred to Villarreal in January. By the end of his first half-season in Spain he had started three of his club’s last six games — evidence that a move to La Liga accelerated his development and tested him in a more technical, aggressive environment.
Freeman described the move in clear, practical terms: "I wanted to make the move to make sure that I can be the best person, best player I can to be able to help my team in the World Cup," he said. "And what better way to do it than going to La Liga, one of the most competitive, technical, and aggressive leagues in the world."
Context matters. Nearly 30 years ago Freeman’s father, Antonio Freeman, rose to his own moment on the NFL’s biggest stage — catching an 81-yard touchdown pass to help the Green Bay Packers win Super Bowl XXXI. Alex says those family conversations have been part pep talk, part steadying voice: "He was just giving me those kind of speeches that you hear from a dad," Freeman said.
The friction in Freeman’s story is immediate. Coaches and fans are weighing a player who had almost no MLS minutes at the start of last year against the demands of a World Cup opener. It’s one thing to be a promising starter in the regular season. It is another to be asked to marshal a defense under a different kind of pressure, in a stadium filled with expectations and family in the stands.
Staffing decisions in the last days before a match are rarely final until the referee walks onto the field. The coaching staff has signaled confidence in Freeman with minutes and starts for both club and country, and with Pulisic’s public backing. Still, the specific role he will occupy if he starts — the kind of defensive partner beside him, how much license he will have to step forward with the ball — remains to be seen.
If he does start Friday, the match will answer the clearest unresolved question: can Freeman translate a swift club-and-international rise into consistent performance at the World Cup level? A confident showing against Paraguay would not only validate the gamble of moving to La Liga in January but also solidify what has already been a fast, unusual trajectory from MLS bench to World Cup starter.
Freeman arrives at SoFi Stadium with pedigree and momentum, with his father’s Super Bowl memory as a backdrop and teammates’ praise as a present-day credential. What remains unsettled is whether the coaching staff will deploy him in a way that lets those strengths matter most — and whether Friday will be the match that transforms a rapid rise into a settled role on the USMNT back line.
