In the 10 full games since the 2022 World Cup, only five of the 110 starting positions on the U.S. national team have been filled by Major League Soccer players, including Gregg Berhalter, who returns as manager. This includes two of the 66 people since then.
Two MLS players are on the 23-man roster for Thursday night's CONCACAF Nations League semifinal against Jamaica in Arlington, Texas: Cincinnati defender Myles Robinson and Miami goaltender Drake Callender.
“They may not be playing in Major League Soccer right now, but Major League Soccer has had a tremendous impact on our player base and has always had an impact since its inception,” Berhalter said Wednesday. “We appreciate the role played by Major League Soccer. We work closely with all our academies and the first teams of many of our teams.”
Over the past 15 months, only one MLS player has started in 10 games on the FIFA International schedule. Robinson started against El Salvador, Mexico, Ghana and Oman, while Walker Zimmerman started against Canada.
Not a single MLS player started in the two games in November. The match against Grenada in March 2023 was the first time since the league's inception in 1996 that MLS players played without changing their clothes.
Seven players on the current roster have previous MLS experience. Goalkeeper Matt Turner. Defenders Mark McKenzie, Tim Ream and Joe Scully, midfielder Tyler Adams, winger Brenden Aaronson and forward Ricardo Pepi.
In addition, defender Chris Richards, midfielders Weston McKennie and Gio Reyna, and forward Tim Weah all played in MLS youth academies.
At 36 years old, Riem is the oldest player on the roster and spent time with the New York Red Bulls in 2010 and 2011 before moving to England with Bolton from 2012 to 2015. He has been with Fulham for the past 10 years and concluded that the American has benefited from his time at the European club.
“This means there is more development, more players willing to push themselves and really step out of their comfort zone, move to Europe and really try to build a career away from home. ” Reem said. “We're seeing guys who were about to make the leap, and we're reaping the benefits of that. And you see it every day. Every time we go into camp, the players grow a little bit, a little bit more. They're getting stronger and growing mentally a little bit. They understand the ups and downs.”
After the United States failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, the Americans embarked on a youth movement centered around a core group of Christian Pulisic, McKennie and Adams. The United States reached the second round of the 2022 World Cup before losing to the Netherlands, but is now preparing to host the 2026 tournament.
Thursday night's game will feature a near-full squad, with the winner advancing to Sunday's Nations League final against either Mexico or Panama. The U.S. will then compete in this summer's Copa America.
“It's great to see how they've matured and grown off the field,” Berhalter said. “Some of them now have young families and children. That's especially gratifying because we've been working with them for a long time.”
According to the Jamaica Observer, West Ham striker Michail Antonio has been dropped from the Jamaican national squad, while forwards Demarai Gray and Shamari Nicholson have been suspended after receiving a second yellow card against Canada in November. became. Leon Bailey and Trivante Stewart are also absent from coach Heimir Hallgrimsson's Reggae Boyz.
“This makes us even more cautious,” Berhalter said. “The players who will get the chance tomorrow night will do everything they can to show their cousin, the coach, that they want to be part of the Copa America team. So it's a dangerous game for us.”
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