Jurgen Klinsmann and U.S. Soccer on Sunday announced a 22-man USMNT roster for a pair of friendlies against Germany and the Netherlands in early June. Included on the roster are nine players from MLS, one from NASL, nine based in Europe and three from Liga MX teams.
Michael Bradley of Toronto FC, Jermaine Jones of the New England Revolution and Kyle Beckerman of Real Salt Lake head the MLS contingent, while Miguel Ibarra of Minnesota United FC gets his latest in a recent string of USMNT call-ups.
UPDATE: Jones was a late scratch from the roster after suffering a groin injury in the New England Revolution’s 2-2 draw against the LA Galaxy on Sunday night. The German-American will not get a chance to represent the US against the Netherlands on Friday or in the country of his birth, Germany, on June 10. Klinsmann does not have any plans to replace Jones on the roster.
The US will meet the Netherlands on Friday, June 5 (2 pm ET; ESPN | ESPN Deportes | WatchESPN | UniMas | UDN) in Amsterdam before heading East to face Germany in Cologne on June 10 (2:45 pm ET; FoxSports 1 | Fox Deportes). Both games are in preparation for the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which begins at the end of June.
“Our time since the World Cup has been a transition period which now winds down before the Gold Cup,” said Klinsmann in a press release. “Playing against top teams like Germany and the Netherlands provides valuable experience, especially for the younger players here. More and more they must understand we come to meet these opponents eye to eye. Obviously it’s a bit tricky when we are without some of our core players, but that creates a huge opportunity for the guys here to benchmark themselves against some of the best players in the world. ”
Some of those absent core players are long-time captain Clint Dempsey, as well as defenders Omar Gonzalez of the LA Galaxy and Matt Besler of Sporting KC, Besler's club teammate, midfielder Graham Zusi, and fellow World Cup midfielder Alejandro Bedoya.
The full USMNT roster:
GOALKEEPERS (3):Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), William Yarbrough (Club Leon)
DEFENDERS (7): Ventura Alvarado (Club America), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Timmy Chandler (Eintracht Frankfurt), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Michael Orozco (Puebla), Brek Shea (Orlando City SC), DeAndre Yedlin (Tottenham Hotspur)
MIDFIELDERS (8):
Kyle Beckerman
(Real Salt Lake),
Michael Bradley
(Toronto FC),
Mix Diskerud
(New York City FC), Miguel Ibarra (Minnesota United FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Mönchengladbach),
Jermaine Jones
(New England Revolution)
, Alfredo Morales (Ingolstadt), Danny Williams (Reading)
FORWARDS (5):Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution), Aron Johannsson (AZ Alkmaar), Bobby Wood (1860 Munich), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy) + Jordan Morris (Stanford) - added on June 3
