USMNT FRIENDLY: Some Interesting Facts and Figures

US soccer edition

The US Men’s National Team’s roster for Wednesday night’s international friendly against Serbia averaged nine international caps as of the first day of training on Jan. 21, with an average age of 24 years and 46 days.

Five players from the USA’s 2022 FIFA World Cup roster will be in camp in January. Johnson (10 caps).

Veteran forward Paul Arriola (48 caps) will return to the USMNT after making his final appearance in a 0-0 draw with Saudi Arabia on September 27, 2022 in Murcia, Spain. If he played in both matches, Arriola would be his 60th USMNT player to appear in his 50 career international matches.

Five other players on the roster have caps: Matthew Hoppe (6), Eric Williamson (4), Cade Cowell (1), Jonathan Gomez (1) and Paxton Pomical (1).

Eleven of the 13 uncapped players are in the first USMNT camp. Defenders Julian Gressel, Jalen Neal, Sam Rogers and John Tolkien. Midfielders Paxten Aaronsson, Aidan Morris and Alan Sonora. Forwards Emmanuel Sabi, Brandon Vazquez and Alejandro Zendejas.

Uncapped goalkeeper Gaga Slonina and defender Dejuan Jones are back in camp for the first time since last January.

Currently, 15 players are under contract with Major League Soccer clubs, 7 players are under contract with overseas clubs, and 2 players (Sean Johnson and Alan Sonora) are currently under contract. plug.

Seven players were from non-Major League Soccer clubs, marking the largest number of foreign-based contingents ever at the USMNT’s January camp. Pakten Aaronsson (Eintracht Frankfurt, Germany), Jonathan Gomez (Real Sociedad, Spain), Matthew Hoppe (Middlesbrough, England), Sam Rogers (Rosenborg, Norway), Emmanuel Sabbi (Odense, Denmark) , Gaga Slonina (Chelsea), Alejandro Zendejas (Club America, Mexico)

There are eight age-restricted athletes for the 2024 Summer Olympics. Matthew Hoppe and Aidan Morris (21). John Tolkien (20); Paxten Aaronson, Cade Cowell, Jonathan Gómez, and Jalen Neal (19). Gaga Slonina (18).

After signing with LAFC early in the new year, defender Aaron Long will play his first match as a member of Black and Gold against Serbia on January 25th at BMO Stadium.

Long’s new teammate Kerrin Acosta will also make his first appearance at BMO Stadium since finding the back of the net to help LAFC win the 2022 MLS Cup final.

The five players from Southern California are Paul Ariola (Chula Vista), Matthew Hoppe (Yorba Linda), Aaron Long (Oak Hills), Jalen Neal (Lakewood) and Brandon Vasquez (San Diego).

Paxton Pomykal was called up to the USMNT for the first time since the January 2020 camp. The FC Dallas midfielder made his senior debut for his side a few months ago in his 1–1 draw against Uruguay on September 10, 2019 in St. Louis.

Midfielder Eric Williamson will return to the USMNT for the first time since appearing in the Concacafe Gold Cup final against Mexico on August 1, 2021 in Las Vegas.

Forward Matthew Hoppe, another member of the 2021 Gold Cup winning side, is chasing his first cap since a 2-1 win over Costa Rica in a World Cup qualifier in Columbus on October 13, 2021. I’m here.

Forward Cade Cowell and defender Jonathan Gomez made their USMNT debuts on December 18, 2021 in a 1-0 friendly win over Bosnia and Herzegovina at Dignity Health Sports Park.

Germany-born veteran defender Julian Gressel received US citizenship on November 5, 2022, paving the way for this month’s call-up. The 29-year-old defender has made nearly 200 official appearances during his time with Atlanta United (2017-19), DC United (2020-22) and Vancouver Whitecaps (2022-present). .

If he appears in either game, 18-year-old Gaga Slonina will become the youngest goalkeeper ever to appear in the USMNT. The current record holder is Tony Meola, who was 19 years and 106 days old when he made his debut on June 7, 1988 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Four of the five World Cup veterans made their USMNT debuts in games related to camp in January. , 2017 v Jamaica) and Jesús Ferreira (February 1, 2020 v Costa Rica).

After earning his first two caps in late 2018, Aaron Long made his third and fourth USMNT appearances in the team’s first two games of 2019. February 2.

Pakhten Aaronsson helped the United States win the 2022 Konka Cafe U-20 Championship and qualify for this year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris , Cade Cowell and Jalen Neal.

Pakhten Aaronsson, the younger brother of 2022 World Cup veteran Brenden Aaronsson, came out last year after helping the Philadelphia Union finish first in the Eastern Conference and reach the MLS Cup Finals. Later, he moved to Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga.

The Aaronsons would be the eighth set of siblings to represent the USMNT if Paxten appears in either game. John and Pedro Debrito. Otto and Rolf Decker. Angelo and Paul DiBernardo. Charlie and Henry McCurry. George and Louis Nanchov. Steve and Ken Snow. Archie and Tom Stark.

Brandon Vazquez and Alejandro Zendejas, teammates and first-timers to the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile, are the seventh and eighth players on the squad to receive the USMNT call-up.

Vazquez finished a breakout season that helped FC Cincinnati to its first berth in the MLS Cup playoffs with 18 goals and eight assists in 33 games.

Zendejas scored four goals and two assists in 16 games, helping Club America top the table during the 2022-23 Liga MX Apertura campaign. He scored a notable goal last weekend in Clausura’s first goal to equalize with Puebla.

Forward Emmanuel Sabi is part of the United States squad at the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in South Korea, and is seeking to become the 10th player from that squad to win the USMNT cap. Injured at the start of the Danish Superliga season, Sabbi made four appearances for Odense before the World Cup suspension, recording two goals and two assists.

Center-back Sam Rodgers, part of the 2018 Konkacafe U-20 Championship-winning USA team, is heading into his first USMNT camp against the backdrop of a strong 2022 Norwegian Eltzerien campaign with Rosenborg. participate in The 23-year-old defender tallied six goals and two assists and in 23 games he scored six shutouts to finish the club in his third place.

Midfielder Alan Sonora, who is currently not with the club, has been called up to the USMNT for the first time after three seasons with Argentina’s Independiente.

Midfielder Aidan Morris and defender John Tolkin were guest players at USMNT’s fitness camp prior to roster selection for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Frisco, Texas last October.

Tolkien, just 20, has appeared in 59 regular-season games over the last two seasons as a left-back for the New York Red Bulls.

Morris, 21, started 20 of 27 regular-season appearances for the Columbus Crew last season.