Bob Bradley named his 20 man squad that will meet Mexico in the World Cup qualifier on August 12th at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. This is shaping up to be the one of the biggest clashes in the history of the rivalry.
Stuart Holden and Chad Marshall were in outstanding form at the recently concluded Gold Cup and have been awarded by being named to the squad.
It will be interesting to see if Bradley gives Jose Francisco Torres any playing time. The midfielder who has Mexican heritage (his father) had the opportunity to play for both countries but chose to play for the USA. He now plays for Mexican league team Pachuca but if Bradley decides to give him minutes expect the raucous Azteca crowd to give him a toasty reception. But his introduction is highly unlikely as buzzsaw midfielder Benny Feilhaber who provided an instant spark of the bench in the Confederations Cup should get the start.
Bradley will rely on his European league players like Jozy Altidore (now with Hull), Charlie Davis (Sochaux), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes) to give the team a boost. Only Landon Donovan of the LA Galaxy provides a local flavour to the starting XI.
One of the more debatable selections is Conor Casey over Kenny Cooper. The Rapids striker was sparingly used in the Confederations Cup and is yet to score a goal in his national appearances. He has been a domestic force with a hat trick scored in yesterday’s rout of Chivas but it probably is his Bundesliga experience that gets him the nod. However, we can make a case for Cooper too. The 1860 Munich centerforward was a very effective sub in the Gold Cup. He already has 4 goals in 9 matches.
U.S. roster
GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa, England), Tim Howard (Everton, England)
DEFENDERS: Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes, France), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover, Germany), Jay DeMerit (Watford, England), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan, Italy), Jonathan Spector (West Ham, England)
MIDFIELDERS: Michael Bradley (Borussia Mönchengladbach, Germany), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Clint Dempsey (Fulham, England), Benny Feilhaber (AGF Aarhus, Denmark), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), José Francisco Torres (Pachuca, Mexico)
FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore (Hull City, England), Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Charlie Davies (Sochaux, France), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy)