With the end of August almost upon us, it was time for U.S. men's national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann to announce the rosters for exhibitions against Costa Rica and Belgium in the beginning of September.
Without question, the most intriguing name on the list is Fabian Johnson. He started for Germany in the U-21 European championship just two years ago but he's followed Klinsmann to the U.S. I can't say that I've ever heard of him but his credentials seem pretty legit: he's a midfielder for Hoffenheim, a German club.
Another former German Timmy Chandler will also get to make his debut for the new U.S. head coach after he got pulled off the roster at the last minute before the Mexico match. Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey get their first CAPs under Klinsmann while Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones and Ricardo Clark were left out of (supposedly to deal with transfer issues with their clubs) this group.
"All three of these players are trying to sort out their club situations, and the deadline for transfers is a week away," Klinsmann said. "They have also not been playing matches, so for these reasons we decided to select different players for this roster."
Freddy Adu wasn't selected, either. The former phenom recently returned to Major League Soccer, and is still adjusting to his new Philadelphia Union team.
The U.S. and Costa Rica meet frequently in CONCACAF play, but this is their first exhibition since 1995. The Americans have an 11-11-6 record overall against the Ticos, including a 2-2 draw on Oct. 14, 2009, that cost Costa Rica a spot in last year's World Cup. The tie dropped Costa Rica to fourth in North and Central American and Caribbean region qualifying, and the Ticos then lost to Uruguay in a playoff for the spot shared by CONCACAF and South America.
This will be the fourth game against Belgium, and first since 1998. Belgium has won the last two meetings.
Roster
Goalkeepers: Tim Howard (Everton, England), Bill Hamid (DC United).
Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra (Glasgow Rangers, Scotland), Edgar Castillo (Club America, Mexico), Timmy Chandler (Nuremberg, Germany), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover, Germany), Clarence Goodson (Brondby, Denmark), Zach Loyd (Dallas), Michael Orozco Fiscal (San Luis, Mexico), Heath Pearce (Chivas USA), Tim Ream (New York)
Midfielders: Kyle Beckerman (Salt Lake), Clint Dempsey (Fulham, England), Maurice Edu (Glasgow Rangers, Scotland), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim, Germany), Sacha Kljestan (Anderlecht, Belgium), Jeff Larentowicz (Colorado), Robbie Rogers (Columbus), Brek Shea (Dallas), Jose Torres (Pachuca, Mexico)
Forwards: Juan Agudelo (New York), Jozy Altidore (AZ Alkmaar, Netherlands), Teal Bunbury (Kansas City), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles).
Other new players in the mix include Hamid, Larentowicz (a former Revs player) and Bunbury.
With more time to train and get prepared, expect some better chemistry between Klinsmann and his team. Likewise, Costa Rica and Belgium represent a step down from the level of Mexico so the U.S. should be more ready to handle teams of that caliber.
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