Jelle Van Damme, Kellyn Acosta added to MLS All-Star roster

Jelle Van Damme - LA Galaxy - March 2016

A pair of players from top teams in the Western Conference are heading to San Jose, California.


It was announced on Tuesday that MLS All-Star head coach Dominic Kinnear has added LA Galaxy's Jelle Van Damme and Kellyn Acosta of FC Dallas to the game-day roster for Thursday’s 2016 AT&T MLS All-Star Game against Arsenal at Avaya Stadium (7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, UniMás, TSN and RDS).


Sporting Kansas City center back Matt Besler had to withdraw from the match due to injury while the Portland Timbers' Liam Ridgewell is currently undergoing a medical to determine his availability for Thursday’s match.


Van Damme has been a stalwart along the LA Galaxy backline in his first season in MLS, starting 17 matches and contributing two assists. Acosta, a product of the FC Dallas academy, is in his fourth season in MLS and has already made a career-high 22 starts. The 21-year-old has one goal and five assists.


Additionally, New York Red Bulls midfielder Derrick Etienne Jr. has been added to the MLS Homegrown squad for Wednesday's  2016 Chipotle MLS Homegrown Game (9 pm ET, FREE stream live on MLSsoccer.com) against Mexico's under-20 national team. Etienne Jr replaced injured Chicago Fire forward Joey Calistri on the team.