Jurgen Klinsmann has announced the 28 players called up to U.S. Men’s National Team January camp, which runs from Jan. 12 to Feb. 8 and includes games against Chile (Jan. 28) and Panama (Feb. 8).
“The prize in 2015 for the senior National Team is the Gold Cup, and this camp will give a lot of our players a chance to kick start their preparations for an important year,” Klinsmann says in the U.S. Soccer release. “We also get an opportunity to introduce the next wave of young players into the program, and in particular work with many of our Olympic-age guys as they build toward qualifying for the 2016 Olympics in Rio.”
Some of the 28 names will be unfamiliar even to die-hard USMNT fans, so we’ve taken the liberty of describing each of the 28 players in one sentence.
Goalkeepers
Alex Bono (unattached) 20 years old
Soon-to-be MLS keeper with exceptional college stats; 2014 Hermann trophy finalist.
Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire) 25
Big keeper with exceptional reach and reflexes; second most senior keeper on roster.
Jon Kempin (Sporting Kansas City) 20
Not KC’s starting keeper, but won MLS Save of the Week for stopping a penalty kick on his debut and was 2014 Homegrown Game MVP.
Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake) 35
Veteran keeper who is short but sweet and good with his feet.
Defenders
Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City) 27
Reads the game like a book, but left his reading glasses in Brazil.
Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United) 23
Rookie center-back who plays like a veteran
Christian Dean (Vancouver Whitecaps FC) 21
Left-footed center-back who partnered Birnbaum in college and was third pick in MLS 2014 draft, but only played four games in 2014.
Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC) 29
Composed midfielder converted into a nervous right-back.
Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution) 33
Fearless midfielder converted into a fearsome defender.
Perry Kitchen (D.C. United) 22
Smart, steady, defensive midfielder.
Shane O’Neill (Colorado Rapids) 21
Wins all the headers (but is sadly not the famous tattoo artist).
Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy) 20
Homegrown player, right-back, LA Galaxy II regular.
Midfielders
Michael Bradley (Toronto FC) 27
Benevolent midfield dictator.
Mix Diskerud (out of contract) 24
Magnificent hair, vision and first touch; between jobs right now.
Dennis Flores (Club Leon) 21
Attacking mid who earned his Liga MX spot after a tryout.
Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake) 21
Low center of gravity, nutmegs without mercy.
Miguel Ibarra (Minnesota United FC) 24
Dribbly, dribbly, dribbly, lob.
Lee Nguyen (New England Revolution) 28
The fastest feet in Major League Soccer.
Marc Pelosi (Liverpool) 20
Left-footed and versatile, a distant relative of Nancy.
Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids) 20
Scored a 35-yard half-volley in 2014, and celebrated with a backflip.
Brek Shea (Orlando City SC) 24
Guns in the air like you just don’t care.
Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC) 21
The new Michael Bradley, maybe—Thierry Henry is a fan.
Forwards
Tesho Akindele (FC Dallas) 22
Pacy goalscorer who said “no thanks” to Canada.
Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC) 31
King of the dead-eyed stare.
Julio Morales (Tepic) 21
Left-footed forward on loan from Guadalajara; not afraid to shoot.
Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes) 31
Undisputed ruler of the six-yard box.
Bobby Wood (1860 Munich) 22
Keeps finding goalscoring chances for USMNT, will eventually score one.
Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy) 23
Pacy striker who scores in streaks; slowly but surely learning all of Robbie Keane’s tricks.