FOXBOROUGH - Three members of the New England Revolution have been invited to the U.S. Men's National Team's first training camp of 2008, which will begin Jan. 3 at U.S. Soccer's National Training Center at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. Forward Pat Noonan, defender Michael Parkhurst and forward Taylor Twellman are among the 26 players called into camp by head coach Bob Bradley in advance of the team's first international competition of 2008, which will be played against Sweden on Jan. 19 in Carson.
"This is the beginning of a very important year for the national team, and we are looking forward to continuing the work of 2007," said Bradley, who completed his first year as head coach with a 12-5-1 record and the 2007 Gold Cup title to his credit. "This is another great opportunity to reinforce the principles of how this team operates both on and off the field, as well as giving us the chance to look at players that may be able to help us when World Cup qualifying begins in June."
The 26-man group assembling in Carson this week is largely composed of players from Major League Soccer with 23 participants playing in the domestic league. MLS teams are well represented, with 13 of 14 clubs contributing players to the Carson camp. Three players will travel across the Atlantic from Scandinavian leagues, which are currently on winter break.
All three of the Revolution players called to camp have National Team experience, with Twellman leading the way with 29 caps, including 10 during the 2007 calendar year when he was one of the team's first-choice options at forward. He has scored six goals for the national team in his career, was an alternate to the U.S.' 2006 World Cup squad and helped the U.S. repeat as CONCACAF Gold Cup champions in June.
Noonan enters the camp with 13 career caps and one goal. While injuries have limited his time with the national team in each of the last two seasons, Noonan was effective during the team's qualifying schedule for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and was also an alternate selection to the World Cup squad.
Parkhurst is coming off a career 2007 season, winning the 2007 MLS Defender of the Year and Fair Play awards, garnering MLS Best XI and All-Star First XI honors and earning his first caps with the National Team. Parkhurst will participate in his second camp under Bradley and earning his first two caps with the squad at the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The U.S. will face Sweden at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 19, at The Home Depot Center. Fox Soccer Channel will televise the game live. The match will be the 500th in the history of the U.S. Men's National Team.
ROSTER BY POSITION
Goalkeepers (4) - Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Will Hesmer (Columbus Crew), Matt Pickens (Chicago Fire), Zach Wells (D.C. United)
Defenders (9) - Dan Califf (Aalborg BK), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Ramiro Corrales (SK Brann), Todd Dunivant (Toronto FC), Clarence Goodson (San Jose Earthquakes), Drew Moor (FC Dallas), Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution), Eddie Robinson (Houston Dynamo), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
Midfielders (7) - Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Brian Davis (Houston Dynamo), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Justin Mapp (Chicago Fire), Pat Noonan (New England Revolution)
Forwards (6) -Josmer Altidore (New York Red Bulls), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards), Chris Rolfe (Chicago Fire), Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution), Jeremiah White (AGF Aarhus)
Head Coach: Bob Bradley
The Revolution, which is coming off its third straight appearance in MLS Cup in 2007, will come together in Foxborough in late January for the start of preseason training for the 2008 campaign. The team will make take two international preseason training trips - to Bermuda and Cancun, Mexico - in conjunction with TNT Vacations. Fans who are interested in joining the team for the trips or who are looking for more information should visit tntvacations.com, or call 1-800-262-0123, ext. 5100.
Season tickets for the 2008 Revolution season are now available with the full 20-game packages starting at $280 and four-game ticket packages starting at $72 apiece. For more information, call 1-877-GET-REVS.
