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U.S. Men's National Team

Jurgen Sticks to His Guns With CONCACAF Cup Squad

If you were hoping that the U.S. national team's crushing defeat against Brazil would prompt Jurgen Klinsmann to consider fresh faces, sorry. The coach released 35 names today, and they are all very familiar.
BY Brian Sciaretta Posted
September 15, 2015
12:30 PM

JURGEN KLINSMANN TODAY ANNOUNCED his 35-player preliminary roster for the October 10th CONCACAF Cup playoff against Mexico at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. The winner will represent the region at the 2017 Confederations Cup in Russia.

As the German previously hinted, there were no surprises on his list and all but two players were either part of the ill-fated 2015 Gold Cup team or were on the roster for the recent friendlies against Peru and Brazil. The only two exceptions are goalkeeper Bill Hamid, who is very unlikely to take part in the game against Mexico, and New England Revolution attacking midfielder Lee Nguyen who has been playing exceptional soccer in MLS since June.

There were a few notable absences on the team, however. Andrew Wooten is tied for the scoring lead in the 2.Bundesliga but failed to play in the recent friendlies after receiving his first call-up. Leon goalkeeper Willian Yarbrough appears to be off the national team radar after losing his starting spot with the Mexican club.

There is also a question of injuries. Timothy Chandler is not on the squad after undergoing surgery. Fullbacks Fabian Johnson and DaMarcus Beasley, however, missed the recent friendlies due to injuries and it will be a close call if they return to full health in time for the Mexico game.

One particularly interesting storyline is that of Jordan Morris. As the only relevant college player to make significant inroads with the senior national team in more than two decades, Morris is also eligible for the U.S. U-23 team.

Unlike John Brooks and DeAndre Yedlin, who have consistently been part of the full national team, many expected Morris to play with the U-23 team in October as that team faces important Olympic qualifiers at the same time the U.S. national team takes on Mexico. Last week Klinsmann said he was unsure if Morris would be part of the full national team in October or instead be with the U-23s. With his inclusion on this roster, he very well might miss out on Olympic qualifying which would be a massive detriment to coach Andi Herzog’s squad as it aims to earn a spot for next summer’s games in Rio de Janeiro.

From this list of 35 players, Klinsmann will have to trim it to 23 for the game and few surprises are expected as the German coach has been reluctant to change the core of his team this year despite some players struggling with their clubs. Instead, Klinsmann has opted to go with experience for its most important game since the 2014 World Cup.

Here's the full provisional roster.

Goalkeepers

Brad Guzan
Bill Hamid
Tim Howard
Nick Rimando

Defenders

Ventura Alvarado
DaMarcus Beasley
Matt Besler
John Brooks
Geoff Cameron
Brad Evans
Greg Garza
Omar Gonzalez
Michael Orozco
Tim Ream
Jonathan Spector
DeAndre Yedlin 

Midfielders

Kyle Beckerman
Alejandro Bedoya
Michael Bradley
Joe Corona
Mix Diskerud
Fabian Johnson
Jermaine Jones
Alfredo Morales
Lee Nguyen
Danny Williams
Gyasi Zardes 
Graham Zusi

Forwards

Jozy Altdiore
Clint Dempsey
Alan Gordon
Aron Johannsson
Jordan Morris
Chris Wondolowski
Bobby Wood

What do you think of this squad? Which player or players would you add? Who makes the final team? Tell us your thoughts below.

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