The USMNT have revealed their roster ahead for Olympic qualifying this month, and it is absolutely stacked with young U.S. talent.
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Jason Kreis has named a 20-man roster for the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament, as the USMNT U23 side have been at a training camp in Mexico.
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 1997 are eligible to compete in the tournament, which is essentially a under 24 tournament.
“We know that qualifying will be a challenge, but it’s a challenge that we’re ready for. We’ll need all 20 players on this roster to contribute for us to achieve our ultimate goal of qualifying for the Olympics,” Kreis said. “We’ve had a productive training camp in Guadalajara and our players are hungry for the opportunity to compete. After starting this journey nearly two years ago, we’re excited to get started with the tournament.”
Ulysses Llanez, Sebastian Soto and Djordje Mihailovic are some of the higher profile players included in the squad. 11 of the 20-man roster have played for the full national team.
The tournament takes place in Mexico on Mar. 18-30, and you won’t need reminding that the USMNT have failed to qualify for the last two Olympics.
For this tournament, the USMNT have been drawn in Group A alongside Mexico, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic. Group B includes Canada, El Salvador, Haiti and Honduras.
The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semifinals and the two teams who reach the final will qualify for the final tournament at the Tokyo Olympics which runs from July 21 to August 7 in 2021.
USMNT roster for Olympic qualifying – Full squad lists, here
GOALKEEPERS (3): Matt Freese (Philadelphia Union; Wayne, Pa.), JT Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes, Alamo, Calif.), David Ochoa (Real Salt Lake; Oxnard, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (6): Julian Araujo (LA Galaxy; Lompoc, Calif.), Justen Glad (Real Salt Lake; Tucson, Ariz.), Aaron Herrera (Real Salt Lake; Las Cruces, N.M.), Henry Kessler (New England Revolution; New York, N.Y.), Mauricio Pineda (Chicago Fire FC; Bolingbrook, Ill.), Sam Vines (Colorado Rapids; Colorado Springs, Colo.)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Johnny Cardoso (Internacional/BRA; Denville, N.J.), Hassani Dotson (Minnesota United FC; Federal Way, Wash.), Ulysses Llanez (Heerenveen/NED; Lynwood, Calif.), Djordje Mihailovic (CF Montreal/CAN; Jacksonville, Fla.), Andres Perea (Orlando City SC; Medellin, Colombia), Sebastian Saucedo (UNAM Pumas/MEX; Park City, Utah), Jackson Yueill (San Jose Earthquakes; Bloomington, Minn.)
FORWARDS (4): Jesus Ferreira (FC Dallas; McKinney, Texas), Jonathan Lewis (Colorado Rapids; Plantation, Fla.), Benji Michel (Orlando City SC; Orlando, Fla.), Sebastian Soto (Norwich City/ENG; San Diego, Calif.)
CONCACAF Olympic qualifying
How to watch: Watch live on the CONCACAF app
Dates: March 18-30
News and updates: online via ProSoccerTalk
CONCACAF 2020 Olympic qualifying schedule
Group Stage
Thursday, March 18 – Jalisco Stadium
3pm ET: USA vs Costa Rica
7:30pm ET: Mexico vs Dominican Republic
Friday, March 19 – Jalisco Stadium
3:30pm ET: Honduras vs Haiti
6pm ET: Canada vs El Salvador
Sunday, March 21 – Akron Stadium
7pm ET: Dominican Republic vs USA
9:30pm ET: Costa Rica vs Mexico
Monday, March 22 – Akron Stadium
6pm ET: Haiti vs Canada
8:30pm ET: El Salvador vs Honduras
Wednesday, March 24 – Jalisco Stadium
7pm ET: Costa Rica vs Dominican Republic
9:30pm ET: Mexico vs USA
Thursday, March 25 – Jalisco Stadium
7pm ET: El Salvador vs Haiti
9:30pm ET: Honduras vs Canada
Semifinals
Sunday, March 28 – Jalisco Stadium
6pm ET: 1B vs 2A
9pm ET: 1A vs 2B
Final
Tuesday, March 30 – Akron Stadium
9pm ET: Winner Semifinal 1 vs Winner Semifinal 2
