MLS will be well represented on the US U-23 national team during the upcoming CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship, with eight players from seven different league teams being named by head coach Andi Herzog (above) to the 20-man roster, it was announced Friday.
Real Salt Lake’s Luis Gil, the U-23’s assists leader in 2015, and San Jose Earthquakes rookie Fatai Alashe – two mainstays on the squad this year – received call-ups. New York Red Bulls defender Matt Miazga, a member of the US U-20 squad that advanced to the quarterfinals of the World Cup earlier this summer in New Zealand received another call after making his U-23 debut in early September.
Alashe will be joined by his club teammate, Marc Pelosi.
The other MLS players named to the roster include Monteal Impact defender Eric Miller, Colorado Rapids defender Dillon Serna, Chicago Fire midfielder Matt Polster and Columbus Crew SC midfielder Wil Trapp.
Seattle Sounders Academy product and Stanford University player Jordan Morris, who has featured recently with the senior national team, was also named to the squad.
"For us it was important that we find the right balance between attacking players and defensive-minded players," Herzog said in the U.S. Soccer announcement. "Because there are no FIFA dates for the first week of the tournament, there were challenges in getting players released. We had discussions with a lot of teams, and while some clubs didn't release their players, overall we received a lot of support, especially from MLS. There was a lot of competition for spots. Of course a few players will be disappointed that they didn't make the roster, and I understand, but we can only have 20 players on the roster and only 17 field players, so they weren't easy decisions. Now we have to be focused on the games and we have to win."
The tournament, played for a spot in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, will be played across the US from Oct. 1-13.
The US were drawn into Group A and open with a pair of games at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan., against Canada on Oct. 1 and Cuba on Oct. 3. The U-23's will conclude group play at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo., on Oct. 6 against Panama.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the tournament semifinals. Winners of the semifinal games will advance to the finals and clinch spots in the Olympics. The winner of the third-place game will qualify for a one-game playoff against Colombia in the final opportunity for an Olympic spot.
Here is the full roster:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Charlie Horton (Leeds; Cleveland, Ohio), Ethan Horvath (Molde; Highlands Ranch, Colo.), Zack Steffen (Freiburg; Downington, Pa.)
DEFENDERS (5): Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur; Westcliff-on-Sea, England), Matt Miazga (New York Red Bulls; Clifton, N.J.), Eric Miller (Montreal Impact; Woodbury, Minn.), William Packwood (Unattached; Concord, Mass.), Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids; Brighton, Colo.)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Fatai Alashe (San Jose Earthquakes; Northville, Mich.), Gboly Ariyibi (Chesterfield; Arlington, Va.), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake; Garden Grove, Calif.), Emerson Hyndman (Fulham; Dallas, Texas), Marc Pelosi (San Jose Earthquakes; Sunnyvale, Calif.), Matt Polster (Chicago Fire; Milwaukee, Wis.), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC; Gahanna, Ohio), Gedion Zelalem (Rangers; Bethesda, Md.)
FORWARDS (4): Alonso Hernandez (C.D. Juarez; El Paso, Texas), Jerome Kiesewetter (VfB Stuttgart; Berlin, Germany), Jordan Morris (Stanford; Mercer Island, Wash.), Maki Tall (FC Sion; Washington, D.C.).
