As of Friday morning, all signs pointed to a U.S. World Cup roster release that was relatively uneventful and inconsequential.Sure, there were questions on the margins for head coach Mauricio Pochettino. There were decisions that would elate or devastate players. There were some on the bubble, such as Gio Reyna and Zavier Gozo, who could, in theory, change a World Cup game. But nothing, it seemed, would really change the USMNT’s outlook.Then, at around 1 p.m. Friday, emails from U.S. Soccer popped into players’ inboxes.One told Tanner Tessmann, a midfielder who featured in each of the last six USMNT games, that he isn’t on the roster, multiple sources told The Athletic.And in that instant, the World Cup calculus changed.It’s not entirely clear why Tessmann has been omitted. He picked up a muscle injury earlier this month, but a source briefed on the injury told The Athletic there was no concern regarding his World Cup availability. Before the injury, his form and playing time had dipped at his French club, Lyon, but he was still seen as a potential World Cup starter — especially after fellow midfielder Johnny Cardoso suffered an ankle injury that required surgery, which ruled Cardoso out of the tournament.Now, of course, Tessmann is not a potential starter. The USMNT midfield, which once appeared deep, suddenly looks unbalanced. Tyler Adams is the roster’s only defensive-minded midfielder playing his club soccer outside MLS. And the question, now, is how the heck Pochettino plans to adjust.Tessmann had started the opening games of the October, November and March windows in a double-pivot, with a rotating cast of midfielders (Aidan Morris, Cristian Roldan, Cardoso) next to him. Adams missed all three of those games (due to the birth of his son and then injuries), but the assumption was that the USMNT’s 2022 World Cup captain would slot into his standard position alongside Tessmann, and their contrasting skillsets — Adams quick, combative and pugnacious, Tessmann rangy and technical — would make them a potent partnership, with Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie ahead of them, plus talented wingbacks on both sides.The USMNT will have a Tanner Tessmann-sized hole in central midfield at the World Cup (Perry McIntyre / ISI Photos / Getty Images)What will Pochettino do instead?He could insert Roldan or Sebastian Berhalter next to Adams.He could pull McKennie back into that deeper role.Or he could change the USMNT’s shape.All three options, though, have drawbacks. No. 1 throws an MLS star into the World Cup fire. No. 2 restricts McKennie, a player who excels with “freedom.” No. 3 is a wildcard that could work, but could also yield a mess.