US National Team prepares for Sweden

US Men’s National Team head coach Bob Bradley has named 26 players to the training camp roster that began workouts Jan. 3 at US Soccer's National Training Center at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The group will prepare for the USA’s first match of 2008, a friendly against Sweden on Jan. 19 at The Home Depot Center. The match will be broadcast live on Fox Soccer Channel beginning at 7:30 p.m. CT.

"This is the beginning of a very important year for the national team, and we are looking forward to continuing the work of 2007,” said Bradley, who completed his first year as head coach with a 12-5-1 record and the 2007 Gold Cup title to his credit. “This is another great opportunity to reinforce the principles of how this team operates both on and off the field, as well as giving us the chance to look at players that may be able to help us when World Cup qualifying begins in June.”

The largely domestic-based group includes 23 players who ply their trade in the United States. The MLS teams are well represented, with 13 of 14 clubs contributing players to the Carson camp. The roster boasts several year-end award winners, including MLS Goalkeeper of the Year (Brad Guzan), Defender of the Year (Michael Parkhurst) and Rookie of the Year (Maurice Edu). In addition, New England Revolution forward Taylor Twellman finished third on the league goalscoring chart with 16 goals, the fourth time in his six-year career he has tallied 15 goals or more. Two-time MLS Cup defending champions Houston Dynamo are one of four clubs to send a trio of players, along with MLS Cup runners up New England Revolution, Chicago Fire and Toronto FC.

Landon Donovan is the leading capwinner on the roster with 96 appearances. The 25-year-old is currently tied for first place on the USA’s all-time goalscoring chart with 34 goals and can lay claim to sole possession of the record with a tally against Sweden. The 2007 U.S. Soccer Male Athlete of the Year finalist is already the all-time leader in assists and points. At the other end of the experience spectrum, there are 20 players on the roster with 10 caps or less, and seven will be in search of their first-ever appearance with the senior team. In 2007, Bradley gave 61 players at least one cap.

Aalborg BK captain Dan Califf leads the three players based in Scandinavia, the six-year international having appeared in the USA’s victories against Switzerland and South Africa earlier this year. Ramiro Corrales returns to the U.S. fold for the first time since 2004, while AGF Aarhus striker Jeremiah White gets his first-ever appearance in a senior national team camp. The trio is available because the Scandinavian leagues are shut down for the winter break.

The roster lays claim to several players with success at the youth national team level. Kyle Beckerman, an inaugural member of the U-17 Residency Program in Bradenton, Fla., played in all six games of the USA’s fourth-place finish at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship in New Zealand and competed in qualifying for the 2004 Olympics. Justin Mapp, another Residency graduate and veteran of two World Youth Championships, started and played in all five matches with the U.S. U-20’s at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship in Dubai (United Arab Emirates), scoring the game-winning goal against the Ivory Coast to help the squad advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament. Current MLS Cup champion Ricardo Clark has been a member of the U-20 and U-23 national teams, appearing on the USA’s 2003 World Youth Championship roster that reached the quarterfinals in the United Arab Emirates. Sacha Kljestan, who is currently serving as captain of the U-23 Men’s National Team, was a member of the U-20 side that advanced to the knockout phase of the 2005 World Youth Championship in Holland after defeating Argentina in their opening game. Josmer Altidore was the fourth-leading scorer at the 2007 FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Canada with four goals, including both U.S. goals in a 2-1 victory in group play, and the lone goal in a 2-1 loss to Austria in the quarterfinals.

After the Sweden match, the US will host regional rivals Mexico on Feb. 6 at Reliant Stadium in Houston. More than 30,000 tickets have been sold for the match that will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and Univision. Along with a series of friendlies, the United States will begin the attempt to qualify for their sixth-consecutive World Cup finals when they take on the winner of the first round series between Barbados and Dominica. The U.S. will host their first qualifier between June 11-14, with the second leg to be played between June 18-21 on the road.

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