Philly Sports Jabronis
Report From Philadelphia Union
Chester, Pa. (May 12, 2014) – Philadelphia Union midfielder Maurice Edu has been named to the U.S. Men’s National Team 30-man preliminary roster by head coach Jurgen Klinsmann for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the club announced today. From this list, a squad of 23 players must be chosen by June 2 for the final roster that will travel to Brazil. The USA’s 23-player FIFA World Cup roster will be announced at a later date.
“It’s very exciting,” Edu said. “That was part of one of my goals that I set in coming back here, coming back to MLS and coming back to Philly. It was kind of a process and this is the next step in the process to what my ultimate goal is… I’m very excited to go there representing not only myself and my family, but also the Union. Obviously, now I need to go in there and work hard and get on that plane to Brazil.”
*Video interview of Maurice Edu talking about his selection in the 30-man preliminary roster can be accessed through the following link (a full transcript is attached):https://mlssoccer.box.com/s/pqalulwn5a1wmf4qzsga.
The 30 players on the preliminary roster will begin reporting to Palo Alto, California, on May 14 for the start of training camp at Stanford University.
“First of all, we want to thank all of the players who have been a part of the process these last three years,” said Klinsmann. “It’s been an incredible journey, and everyone has worked tremendously hard. We had some difficult decisions to make, and we are very excited about the 30 players coming into camp. There is competition in every position, and these next couple of weeks will allow us to make the final determinations on the best 23-man unit to represent the United States in the World Cup.”
Edu most recently represented the U.S. April 2 in a friendly against Mexico at University of Phoenix Stadium, where he was a second-half substitution in the 2-2 draw. It marked his first time representing the national team since March 26, 2013 in a historic draw against Mexico at Estadio Azteca during World Cup qualifying. Edu boasts an extensive resumé as a U.S. Men’s National Team member, playing in over 40 matches since 2007. The native Californian made his first appearance in 2007 against Switzerland and notched his first goal in 2010 against Czech Republic. He was also a member of the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad for the U.S., playing in three matches and recording one start during the competition. Edu started in the final group match, a 1-0 victory over Algeria that saw the Americans advance on a stoppage time goal. He played 89 minutes in the following game vs. Ghana in the tournament’s Round of 16.
The U.S. Men’s National Team was drawn into Group G of the 2014 FIFA World Cup along with Ghana, Portugal and Germany. The U.S. opens the tournament on June 16 against Ghana, with kickoff at 6 p.m. ET (7 p.m. local) at Estadio Das Dunas in Natal, located on the northeast coast of the country in the state of Rio Grande do Norte.
The USA will then face Portugal on June 22 at 6 p.m. ET (6 p.m. local) at Arena Amazonia in Manaus, in the state of Amazonas, and will finish group play against three-time World Cup champion Germany at Arena Pernambuco in Recife, which is the capital of the state of Pernambuco and is also located on the northeast coast of the country. Kickoff for the match against Germany is at 12 p.m. ET (1 p.m. local).
U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (11): DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Timmy Chandler (Nürnberg), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Clarence Goodson (San Jose Earthquakes), Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim), Michael Parkhurst (Columbus Crew), DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders FC)
MIDFIELDERS (10): Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Mix Diskerud (Rosenborg), Maurice Edu (Philadelphia Union), Julian Green (Bayern Munich), Jermaine Jones (Besiktas), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
FORWARDS (6): Jozy Altidore (Sunderland), Terrence Boyd (Rapid Vienna), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Aron Johannsson (AZ Alkmaar), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes).
