Arena selects 23-player USMNT roster for Jan. 29 friendly vs. Serbia
CHICAGO (Via U.S. Soccer) – U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bruce Arena has selected the final 23-player roster that will face Serbia on Jan. 29 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego. Kickoff for the USA’s first match of 2017 is set for 1 p.m. PT, and will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and UniMas.
Five days after USA-Serbia, the MNT will make its first visit to Chattanooga, Tenn., on Feb. 3 to host regional rival Jamaica. Kickoff in front of an expected capacity crowd of 20,000 at Finley Stadium is set for 7 p.m. ET, and the match will be broadcast live on FS1 and UniMas (simulcast on UDN).
A total of 31 players gathered in Carson beginning on Jan. 10 for the annual January Camp at the National Training Center. The delegation travels this afternoon to San Diego to begin final preparations.
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“I have been extremely pleased with the effort and progress we have seen throughout the January Camp,” Arena said. “The entire pool of players has performed well and has made our roster decisions very difficult. We are excited to take the next step and look forward to the game against Serbia in San Diego.”
U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls)
DEFENDERS (8): DaMarcus Beasley (Unattached),Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Greg Garza (Atlanta United FC), Chad Marshall (Seattle Sounders FC), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna, MEX), Walker Zimmerman (FC Dallas), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City), Jermaine Jones (LA Galaxy), Sacha Kljestan (New York Red Bulls), Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Chris Pontius (Philadelphia Union)
FORWARDS (3): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution), Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC)
Five players were released back to their clubs: Taylor Kemp, Keegan Rosenberry, Brian Rowe, Wil Trapp, and Chris Wondolowski. In addition, LA Galaxy striker Gyasi Zardes has a minor contusion in his right knee and will not travel.
Meantime, Toronto FC forward Jozy Altidore is poised to enter the record books on Sunday. Should he play against Serbia, Altidore will become only the 17th player in MNT history to earn 100 caps and the second youngest to achieve the feat after Landon Donovan.
