Ramos names 20-player U.S. U-20 MNT roster ahead of U-20 World Cup

CHICAGO (Via U.S. Soccer) – U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team head coach Tab Ramos has called in 20 players for the U-20’s second foreign training camp of the year to be held from April 18-26 in Linz, Austria.

During camp, the U-20 MNT will play friendly matches against fellow U-20 World Cup side Qatar on April 21, followed by a matchup against Croatia on April 25. Both games will be played at Red Bull Arena, home of FC Red Bull Slazburg in Wals-Siezenheim, Austria.

This will be the second camp of the year for Ramos’ group, who recently returned from a seven-day camp in England where it faced England’s U-21’s on March 29. This Austria camp will continue the USA’s preparation for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which takes place in New Zealand from May 30–June 20.

Eleven of the 20 players on the roster were part of the U.S. team that competed in the 2015 CONCACAF U-20 Championship and qualified the USA for the U-20 World Cup, while 12 players from the March camp in England return to be part of this squad.

All 20 players in the group have been previously called up to a camp or competed with the U-20 MNT since the 2014 cycle began.

Only three players will be joining the U-20’s for the first time in 2015: midfielders Jordan Allen and Cristian Roldan and forward Zach Pfeffer. Pfeffer has seen time with the U-23’s this year, and was called up to join the team during its training camp in Copenhagen on March 30.

Nine players represent clubs in Major League Soccer: defenders Conor Donovan (Orlando City SC), Matthew Miazga (New York Red Bulls) and Erik Palmer-Brown (Sporting Kansas City); midfielders Allen (Real Salt Lake), Marco Delgado (Toronto FC), Romain Gall (Columbus Crew SC) and Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC); and forwards Pfeffer (Philadephia Union) and Tommy Thompson (San Jose Earthquakes).

The USA was drawn into Group A of the U-20 World Cup alongside host New Zealand, Ukraine and first-time participant Myanmar. The U.S. opens the tournament May 30 against Myanmar, continues play on June 2 against New Zealand, and wraps up the group stage against Ukraine on June 5.

Roster By Position (Detailed Roster):
GOALKEEPERS (2) : Jeff Caldwell (University of Virginia; Todd, N.C.), Zack Steffen (SC Freiburg; Downington, Pa.)
DEFENDERS (6): Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur; Westcliff on Sea, England), Conor Donovan (Orlando City SC; Fuquay-Varina, N.C.), Matthew Miazga (Clifton, N.J.; New York Red Bulls), Shaquell Moore (Unattached; Powder Springs, Ga.), Erik Palmer-Brown (Sporting Kansas City; Lee’s Summit, Mo.), John Requejo (Club Tijuana; Carpinteria, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Jordan Allen (Real Salt Lake; Rochester, N.Y.), Marco Delgado (Toronto FC; Glendora, Calif.), Junior Flores (Borussia Dortmund; Manassas Park, Va.), Romain Gall (Columbus Crew SC; Herndon, Va.), Lynden Gooch (Sunderland; Santa Cruz, Calif.), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC; Pico Rivera, Calif.), Ethan Sonis (SC Freiburg; Coral Springs, Fla.), Joel Sonora (CA Boca Juniors; Buenos Aires, Argentina)
FORWARDS (4): Amando Moreno (Club Tijuana; Morganville, N.J.), Zach Pfeffer (Philadelphia Union; Dresher, Pa.), Maki Tall (Red Star; Washington, D.C.), Tommy Thompson (San Jose Earthquakes; Loomis, Calif.)

Additional Notes:

• Midfielder Romain Gall is the lead goal scorer of the group with five tallies in 2015, all coming at the 2015 CONCACAF U-20 Championship.
• Forward Maki Tall scored the U.S. goal in the 2-1 defeat against England. It was Tall’s first cap, start and career goal with the USA.
• Defenders Cameron Carter-Vickers and John Requejo are the only two players to have featured in all seven matches for the U-20’s this year, playing every minute.
• Requejo, Gall and Tommy Thompson are the most capped players in the group, all with 14 apiece in their U-20 careers.
• Requejo and Amando Moreno are teammates at Liga MX side Club Tijuana, while Ethan Sonis and Zack Steffen team up for SC Freiburg in the Bundesliga.
• Eleven of the 20 players on the roster competed at the 2015 CONCACAF U-20 Championship. They include: Gall, Steffen, Carter-Vickers, Conor Donovan, Matthew Miazga, Shaquell Moore, Requejo, Junior Flores, Lynden Gooch, Moreno and Thompson
• The 12 returning players from the March camp in England include: Jeff Caldwell, Carter-Vickers, Donovan, Moore, Erik Palmer-Brown, Requejo, Marco Delgado, Gooch, Sonis, Joel Sonora, Tall and Thompson.
• Sixteen players on the roster have ties to the U.S. Soccer Development Academy: Caldwell (NC Fusion), Steffen (Continental FC DELCO), Donovan (Capital Area RailHawks Academy- CASL), Miazga (New York Red Bulls), Moore (FC Dallas), Palmer-Brown (Sporting Kansas City), Requejo (Real So Cal), Jordan Allen (Real Salt Lake AZ and Empire Revolution), Delgado (Chivas USA and Cosmos Academy West), Flores (McLean Youth Soccer), Gall (D.C. United), Gooch (Santa Cruz Breakers Academy), Sonis (FC Dallas and Kendall SC), Moreno (New York Red Bulls), Pfeffer (Continental FC DELCO) and Thompson (Central Development Academy)