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Global Jan 26, 2015

Klinsmann names 23-player roster for upcoming friendlies

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CHICAGO (Via U.S. Soccer) – U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has named a 23-player roster for the upcoming friendlies against Chile and Panama, including nine players from the 2014 FIFA World Cup roster.

The group will travel to Santiago on Saturday morning in advance of the USA’s opening match of 2015 when it takes on Chile on Wednesday, Jan. 28, in Rancagua. Kickoff at Estadio El Teniente is set for 6 p.m. ET and the match will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 1, UniMas and the Univision Deportes Network.

“These guys have put in a lot of work these past two weeks of training for what is essentially their preseason, and now it’s time to focus on getting a result against a difficult opponent in Chile,” said Klinsmann. “We know it’s going to be a challenging situation, but these are the types of opportunities we need to keep growing.”

The camp that began on Jan. 12 at the National Training Center in Carson, California, included 28 players. Jozy Altidore and Matt Hedges were brought into the group, while Brad Evans was forced to depart with tendinitis in his left knee. Tottenham Hotspur defender DeAndre Yedlin will meet the team in Chile.

Meanwhile, six players have been released back to their clubs: Tesho Akindele (FC Dallas), Alex Bono (Toronto FC), Christian Dean (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Dennis Flores (Club Leon) Julio Morales (Tepic) and Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy), and Liverpool midfielder Marc Pelosi will remain in the area and rejoin the group when it returns to Los Angeles.

“This was a really important experience for these U-23 players,” Klinsmann said. “They got a great introduction into the senior National Team program, and had the opportunity to work with Andi Herzog and our staff as we build toward Olympic qualifying in the fall. They put in a tremendous amount of work and we learned a lot about them. We appreciate the effort and will continue to monitor them in their club situations.”

The camp culminates with a friendly against the Panama on Sunday, Feb. 8, in Carson. Kickoff at StubHub Center is set for 1 p.m. PT, and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN, UniMas and Univision Deportes Network.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire), Jon Kempin (Sporting Kansas City), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (7): Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution), Perry Kitchen (D.C. United), Shane O’Neill (Colorado Rapids), DeAndre Yedlin (Tottenham Hotspur)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Mix Diskerud (New York City FC), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake), Miguel Ibarra (Minnesota United FC), Lee Nguyen (New England Revolution), Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids), Brek Shea (Orlando City), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC)
FORWARDS (5): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Bobby Wood (1860 Munich), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)

ROSTER NOTES

  • Nine players on the camp were members of the 2014 FIFA World Cup roster that traveled to Brazil and helped the USA advance out of the “Group of Death”: Jozy Altidore, Matt Besler, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Mix Diskerud, Jermaine Jones, Nick Rimando, Chris Wondolowski and DeAndre Yedlin
  • Dempsey, Besler, Bradley and Jones were the only four who started in all four matches for the USA during the World Cup.
  • Dempsey became the first U.S. player to score in three World Cups after scoring seconds into the USA’s opening game against Ghana on June 16. Dempsey’s goal is the fifth-fastest in World Cup history.
  • Jones scored his first World Cup goal and fourth with the U.S. MNT against Portugal on June 22, an equalizer in the 64th minute from well outside the box after he picked up a loose ball from a U.S. corner kick.
  • Fourteen different Major League Soccer teams are represented on the roster, with no team having more than two members each.
  • After Dempsey (110 caps/39 goals), Bradley is the most experienced member of the camp with 91 career caps and 12 goals. Conversely, eight players will be looking to earn their first cap for the senior team.
  • Rimando, who is participating in his seventh January camp, has 16 caps in his career and boasts a 10-0-2 record with four shutouts.
  • Gyasi Zardes is making his first camp appearance for the USA.
  • After a terrific 2014 MLS season, midfielder Lee Nguyen was named to the MLS Best XI and was a finalist for the MLS MVP award. He returned to the U.S. MNT on Nov. 14, 2014, during a friendly against Colombia at Craven Cottage in London when he replaced Diskerud in the 78th minute. It marked his first appearance since 2007 and his fourth cap overall.
  • The camp marks the third-straight January camp call-up for Besler and second-straight for Luis Gil and Shane O’Neill.
  • Miguel Ibarra, who earned his first caps for the U.S. team in 2014, is the reigning MVP of the North American Soccer League.
  • Gil, O’Neill, Wil Trapp and Yedlin were all part of the roster that traveled to Turkey to represent the USA in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. The U-20 MNT was unable to advance out of the group stage, but it did play eventual tournament champion France to a 1-1 draw. During the tournament in Turkey, Gil scored against Spain and O’Neill against Ghana. Gil, Trapp and Yedlin started all three matches of the tournament while O’Neill started the final two.
  • Gil, Jon Kempin, O’Neill, Dillon Serna, Sorto, Trapp, Bobby Wood and Yedlin would all be age-eligible to compete at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio.
  • Nine players have ties to the Development Academy: Steve Birnbaum (Pateadores), Gil (Pateadores), Kempin (Sporting KC), O’Neill (Colorado Rapids), Serna (Colorado Rapids), Trapp (Crew Soccer Academy), Wood (Strikers FC), Yedlin (Seattle Sounders FC) and Zardes (LA Galaxy).

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