The United States Men's National Team will start off 2018 World Cup qualifying this week and head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has named 23 players to the roster for this run of games. Among the players called to play include Fabian Johnson, Matt Miazga and Darlington Nagbe, but star Clint Dempsey was dropped for this run for the team.
Klinsmann previously had Dempsey with the team in the CONCACAF Cup when the United States lost against Mexico and this time he decided to keep the veteran off the roster. Klinsmann said that he is looking for some of the younger players to get experience and it doesn't mean that Dempsey won't be back. The United States has a fairly easy group for qualifying and the team is favored in its two matches coming up.
The United States is in Group A with Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala as well as St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The first match for the team will be against St. Vincent and the Grenadines and that will be on Friday from Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The second match will be against Trinidad & Tobago and that will be from Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain. The next round of matches start up in March and that will have the United States against Guatemala.
The United States is bringing in a mix of veterans and young players, including Jozy Altidore, Michael Bradley, Tim Howard, Kyle Beckerman, Matt Besler and Geoff Cameron. Miazga and Nagbe are making their first appearances for the team, while Jordan Morris and Bobby Wood were also included. Alejandro Bedoya, Brad Evans and Nick Rimando will all be out with injuries or illness.
Check here for more on Klinsmann, the US roster and Dempsey.
