Christian Gomez has been named to the MLS All-Star First XI as announced today by Major League Soccer. The MLS All-Stars will take on Scottish Premier League champions Celtic FC in the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game on Thursday, July 19 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo. The game will be televised live on ESPN2 and Telefutura at 9:00 p.m. ET.
"This all-star nomination for Christian is well-deserved," said United Technical Director Dave Kasper. "He is one of the most dangerous attacking players in the League and is well worth the price of admission to see."
The announcement marks the third consecutive All-Star appearance for Gomez. One of the most talented midfielders in the League, he has a staggering 33 goals and 24 assists in 83 games. This season, the Argentine midfielder has started all of United's 13 matches, collecting four goals and four assists. Gomez was honored as last year's MLS MVP and has led the Black-and-Red to the top of the Eastern Conference standings. With United captain Jaime Moreno away on Bolivian National team duty, Gomez recently served as team captain in his team's 4-1 victory against Colorado Rapids and 1-0 win at Kansas City. Last year, Gomez and D.C. United beat Celtic FC 4-0 at RFK Stadium.
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The First XI players are determined by online fan balloting comprising 25 percent of the total vote, with MLS coaches and GMs (25 percent), media (25 percent) and players (25 percent) accounting for the remainder. On July 10, Revolution head coach Steve Nicol and his staff will select five additional All-Stars, who will join two other Commissioner selections to comprise the MLS 18-man roster. Nicol earned the honor of coaching the MLS side by leading his team to the highest points per game average in the League through games on June 25 (Week 12).
The First XI is not necessarily the starting 11, as Nicol will select the starters based on player availability and tactical considerations. The First XI selections are below:
Goalkeeper - Matt Reis (New England Revolution)
Defender - Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA)
Defender - Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards)
Defender - Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution)
Midfielder - Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo)
Midfielder - Dwayne De Rosario (Houston Dynamo)
Midfielder - Christian Gomez (D.C. United)
Midfielder - Shalrie Joseph (New England Revolution)
Midfielder - Juan Carlos Toja (FC Dallas)
Forward - Juan Pablo Angel (New York Red Bulls)
Forward - Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards)
