SANDY, Utah – DeAndre Yedlin and Luis Gil are on US national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann’s radar.
They just happen to be way over at the periphery, and in the words of Klinsmann himself, “It’s a big radar.”
In a press conference at Rio Tinto Stadium on Tuesday night ahead of the US Open Cup final, Klinsmann talked about his memories of cup finals as a player, his current national team and some faces that could become prominent in the future.
“All the youngsters that were with Tab [Ramos on the US U-20 World Cup team], we watch them, you know,” Klinsmann explained when asked specifically about Gil’s possible USMNT future. “DeAndre Yedlin, for example in Seattle, if it’s Luis here, or someone else there.
“We also see that they’re still missing a lot, so give them time. The best thing that can happen is they play games, play as many games as they can.”
Seattle Sounders rookie Yedlin and Real Salt Lake midfielder Gil are two of the more prominent veterans of that U-20 squad, both starters (when healthy) for teams in the thick of the Supporters’ Shield race. Integration into the full national team seems predestined, but timing will still play a big role.
And the timing, with a trip to Brazil visible on the horizon, seems like it may not be quite right. Not yet.
“Hopefully we see in the next couple of years one of those guys breaking through and making a point,” Klinsmann said. “I think we’ve got a couple of guys breaking through now that were with the Olympic team two years ago.”
