It’s starting to look like the Seattle Sounders may be without two of their top players during preseason a little while longer.
While standout performances were in short supply for the United States national team in their 0-0 tie against Canada on Tuesday, Brad Evans and Eddie Johnson apparently have done enough to be named to the roster for next week's World Cup qualifier against Honduras. Jurgen Klinsmann's official squad announcement won't come until Monday, but Sigi Schmid may have spilled the beans.
“The only thing I can tell you is Eddie and Brad are not here right now and we don't expect them in the next few days,” the Sounders head coach told reporters during a conference call from training camp in Arizona on Friday.
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Johnson played 74 minutes at forward on Tuesday in Houston, where he got a couple decent looks. Evans (above) started in central midfield before moving to right back for the entire second half. He came close to assisting Johnson with a well-placed cross from the right wing, but the shot went high.
“I thought Eddie did a reasonable job up front,” Schmid said. “His hold-up play was good. But nobody was really sharp and decisive. I thought was Evans was able to show his versatility.”
Johnson, a veteran of the 2006 World Cup, returned to the US fold last fall after a two-year absence from the national team picture. He scored a brace in the Americans' CONCACAF qualifying win at Antigua and Barbuda and then logged an assist four days later in a win over Guatemala. Evans, meanwhile, has been in Klinsmann's past two January camps.
