Eight players connected to MLS teams have been named to the US U-17 national team’s World Cup roster, U.S. Soccer announced Thursday.
FC Dallas midfielder Alejandro Zendejas, LA Galaxy II goalkeeper Eric Lopez and New York Red Bulls II defender Tyler Adams, along with five academy players, were part of head coach Richie Williams’ 21-player roster for the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup, which runs from Oct. 17-Nov. 8 in Chile.
"I think it's a pretty well-rounded roster," Williams said in a statement provided by U.S. Soccer. "When you look over the two-plus years we've been together, we've had the ability to push forward and score goals with a lot of talented attacking players, but also on the defensive end we've had a lot of great games where we've defended well. We were able to play a good amount of international matches and domestic matches, and we hope through all of those experiences we have a really balanced team of 21 players that comes together and gets positive results."
The U-17s were drawn into Group A with host Chile, Croatia and Nigeria and open group play against Nigeria on Oct. 17 in Santiago. The team will then square off with Croatia on Oct. 20 and Chile on Oct. 23, both in Vina del Mar.
Twenty players on the roster were a part of the Under-17 team that defeated Jamaica in penalty kicks in March to qualify the USA for the World Cup and 20 are products of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy.
A total of 24 countries participate in the tournament. The top two teams in each group, as well as the best four third-place teams, advance to the Round of 16 on October 28 and 29.
Here is the complete US roster:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Eric Lopez (LA Galaxy II; Westminster, Calif.), William Pulisic (Richmond United; Mechanicsville, Va.), Kevin Silva (Players Development Academy; Bethlehem, Pa.)
DEFENDERS (8): Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls II; Wappinger Falls, N.Y.),Hugo Arellano (LA Galaxy Academy; Norwalk, Calif.), Danny Barbir (West Bromwich Albion; Allentown, Penn.), Tanner Dieterich (Real Salt Lake Academy; Nashville, Tenn.), John Nelson (Internationals; Medina, Ohio), Matthew Olosunde (New York Red Bulls Academy; Trenton, N.J.), Auston Trusty (Philadelphia Union Academy; Media, Pa.), Alexis Velela (New York Cosmos; San Diego, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (5): Eric Calvillo (Real So Cal; Palmdale, Calif.), Luca de la Torre (Fulham F.C. San Diego, Calif.), Thomas McCabe (Players Development Academy; South Orange, N.J.), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund; Hershey, Pa.), Alejandro Zendejas (FC Dallas; El Paso, Tex.)
FORWARDS (5): Pierre da Silva (Orlando City SC Academy; Port Chester, N.Y.), Joe Gallardo (C.F. Monterrey; San Diego, Calif.), Josh Perez (Unattached; La Habra, Calif.), Brandon Vazquez (Club Tijuana; Chula Vista, Calif.), Haji Wright (New York Cosmos; Los Angeles, Calif.)
