LA Galaxy forward Gyasi Zardes has been named to a 23-man roster by U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Bruce Arena for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The Hawthorne, California product has made 31 appearances for the USMNT in addition to scoring six goals all time. Zardes earned his first ever call up to his country in January 2015 before going on to tie the record for most appearances by a player in their first year with the USMNT (19).
With a mix of veterans and promising young talent, the United States will seek its sixth confederation championship title. Less than a year out from the 2018 FIFA World Cup, this tournament provides a huge platform for players to demonstrate they should be included if the U.S. qualifies.
“It’s a good roster with a nice blend of experienced, veteran players and a good group of newcomers as well,” Arena said. “There’s good balance at every position. We can play a number of ways, and I think all these players have a desire to play for the U.S. and will be working hard. It will be a competitive camp. They are going to be highly motivated, very coachable and they have an opportunity to make a statement.”
Players begin reporting June 25 into Nashville. The team heads to East Hartford, Conn. for a tournament tune-up against Ghana on July 1 at Pratt & Whitney Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1:45 p.m. PT, and the match will be broadcast live on ESPN, UniMas and UDN (with a pregame show on UniMas and UDN starting at 1 p.m. PT).
Per tournament rules, the final roster must be submitted no later than June 27. A player may be replaced on the roster up to 24 hours prior a team’s first match of the group phase in the case of injury. In addition, a total of six changes may be made in the 24 hours after the end of the group phase ahead of the Knockout Round. In both instances, the replacement players must come from the 40-man preliminary roster.
U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (Club; Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC; 54/0), Bill Hamid (D.C. United; 2/0), Sean Johnson (New York City FC; 5/0)
DEFENDERS (8): Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City; 39/1), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca/MEX; 39/1), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas; 2/0), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest/ENG; 11/0), Matt Miazga (Chelsea/ENG; 2/0), Justin Morrow (Toronto FC/CAN; 1/0), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna, MEX; 6/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City; 47/5)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas; 8/0), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana/MEX; 5/2), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union; 60/2), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana/MEX; 17/2), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire; 6/0), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders FC; 0/0), Kelyn Rowe (New England Revolution; 0/0), Kenny Saief (Gent/BEL; 0/0), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy; 31/7)
FORWARDS (3): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution; 23/3), Dom Dwyer (Sporting Kansas City; 0/0), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC; 15/2)
