Breaking Down Jurgen Klinsmann's USMNT Roster for Chile Friendly

On Saturday, United States men’s national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann named his 23-man roster for the USMNT’s Jan. 28 friendly against Chile.

The match, which will kick off at 6 p.m. ET and be broadcast on Fox Sports 1, will be the first action of the new year for the U.S. squad.

In a statement (via Fox Sports), Klinsmann said of his squad: 

"

These guys have put in a lot of work these past two weeks of training for what is essentially their preseason, and now it’s time to focus on getting a result against a difficult opponent in Chile.

We know it’s going to be a challenging situation, but these are the types of opportunities we need to keep growing.

"

Here is a look at Klinsmann’s choices.

Goalkeepers

USA TODAY Sports

At goalkeeper, there were few surprises. Sean Johnson and Nick Rimando made the roster, while D.C. United’s Bill Hamid was left off due to a shoulder injury. The third keeper for the friendly will be Sporting Kansas City’s Jon Kempin, who was one of several Olympic age-eligible players called into the January training camp. Collegian Alex Bono, who was drafted by Toronto FC while the January camp was in session, has been released back to his club and did not travel with the team to Chile.

MLS standouts Bobby Shuttleworth, Steve Clark and Luis Robles were all left off the initial roster despite standout seasons this past year.

Defenders

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

In the back, Klinsmann will have a number of experienced options in Matt Besler, Jermaine Jones and DeAndre Yedlin, the latter of whom was brought into the fold at the last minute. Yedlin's inclusion came as a bit of a surprise considering he had just made his move to Tottenham at the beginning of January and the friendly against Chile is not during an official FIFA international date.

FC Dallas' Matt Hedges was another surprise inclusion, but not because he hadn’t earned a look. He wasn’t included in the original training camp roster released at the beginning of the month, but was only added a week later after the camp had already begun.

The new faces in the back will include the D.C. United combo of Perry Kitchen and Steve Birnbaum, as well as Colorado Rapids center-back Shane O’Neill. Kitchen has been a part of the U.S. youth setup in the past, and Birnbaum earned a call-up after earning MLS Rookie of the Year honors this past fall. O’Neill has a senior call-up under his belt already, but he has not yet earned a cap with the senior team.

MLS youngsters Christian Dean and Oscar Sorto were a part of the training camp roster, but Klinsmann released both when announcing the match roster.

Brad Evans was also part of the training camp, but he withdrew after picking up an injury several days in.

Omar Gonzalez did not participate in the camp due to a minor injury, while Robbie Rogers, Andrew Farrell and Maurice Edu did not merit a call-up in Klinsmann’s view.

Klinsmann explained his rationale behind excluding Rogers from the camp to MLSsoccer.com's Scott French:

"

There was a thought about Robbie [coming in]. He had a good season, also, obviously, a winning season. The situation is just, and this is what this kind of camp ended up with was: How can we develop the maximum amount of Olympic team players at the same time?

If it was purely senior guys, Robbie would be in that camp.

"

Rogers claims that Klinsmann—who was a mentor to him in his youth—has not spoken to him since he revealed he was gay nearly two years ago. "I don't know how he feels about me as a soccer player," he told reporters at MLS's media day. "I don't know how he feels about the whole situation, but I'm sure down the road I'll speak with him." 

Midfielders

John Raoux/Associated Press

In the U.S. midfield, Klinsmann will have veterans Michael Bradley and Mix Diskerud at his disposal, as well as a number of talented youngsters in Luis Gil, Wil Trapp and Dillon Serna. The latter three are all considered some of the brightest midfield prospects in the U.S. player pool and will be looking to finally break through to the senior team.

Daryl Grove of Paste Magazine highlighted Gil, Trapp and Serna as players to watch:

"

Keep an eye our for uber-talented midfielder Wil Trapp—what he lacks in correct spelling of his first name, he more than makes up for in intelligent tackling, interceptions and ball distribution.

Dillon Serna is going to cut in from the right like a hairier, more American Arjen Robben, while little Luis Gil has got the skills to pay the bills.

"

Also on the fringes but looking to become a bigger part of the squad in 2015 are Lee Nguyen, Brek Shea and Miguel Ibarra. Nguyen enjoyed a standout MLS campaign in 2014 and could be the exact type of dynamic attacking midfielder the U.S. attack has lacked over the past year. Ibarra, who was a shock inclusion in the fall friendlies, plays in the second division of American soccer but has caught Klinsmann’s eye.

Shea was a surprise inclusion considering his lack of club playing time over the past few years. However, Klinsmann is giving him a chance to show that he is international caliber, despite a bevy of evidence seeming to prove otherwise.

Kyle Beckerman was left off the roster at his own request to focus on his upcoming season with Real Salt Lake, while veteran Graham Zusi is missing due to injury.

Dennis Flores and Marc Pelosi, who were both called in for training, did not make the trip down to Chile. Flores has been released back to his club, while Pelosi is remaining in Los Angeles and will rejoin the team when they return and begin preparing for next week’s match against Panama.

Snubs for the January roster included MLS youngsters Harry Shipp and Kelyn Rowe, both of whom enjoyed standout campaigns in 2014 but were not deemed worthy of inclusion on the roster this time around.

Forwards

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Up top, Klinsmann will have a number of the usual suspects, including Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey and Chris Wondolowski. Altidore was added to the camp late, after his transfer to Toronto FC was completed.

Bobby Wood, who is looking for a way out of 1860 Munich, and L.A. Galaxy’s Gyasi Zardes are also on the squad.

Wood, like Shea, seems to be a favorite of Klinsmann’s, earning repeated call-ups despite poor club form. Zardes is coming off a strong season with the Galaxy and will be looking to push his way into the regular U.S. player pool.

Julio Morales and Tesho Akindele, who were both on the training camp roster, were released back to their clubs and are not on the roster for the friendly against Chile.

Follow me on Twitter @JohnDHalloran

Follow me on Facebook www.facebook.com/AmericanTouchline