SANDY, Utah – Real Salt Lake has announced that Captain Kyle Beckerman, GK Nick Rimando and MF Luis Gil have been called up to the United States Men’s National Team’s January training camp.
The RSL trio will report to USMNT camp on January 6 in Carson, Calif. and train at the StubHub Center – home of LA Galaxy – from Jan 7-12. A 23-man roster will then be selected to train in Brazil from Jan. 13-25 while those not selected will continue to train in Carson. The entire squad will then resume training in Southern California on January 27 ahead of the U.S.’s match against Korea Republic on February 1 at 3:00 p.m. MT at StubHub Center. The match will be televised live on ESPN2.
A regular member of U.S. manager Jurgen Klinsmann’s squad selections, Beckerman has 33 career caps with the United States. He appeared in ten matches – including nine starts – for the U.S. in 2013, notching two assists for the Stars-and-Stripes last calendar year. Beckerman captained the U.S. in its 0-0 draw against Canada on Jan. 29, 2013 in Houston and earned CONCACAF Gold Cup Final MVP honors in the U.S.’s tournament clinching win over Panama on July 28, 2013.
Nick Rimando has 12 career caps with the U.S senior team. The 34-year-old ‘keeper had six appearances with the USMNT in 2013, posting a perfect 6-0-0 record, registering two shutouts, allowing just four goals and helping lead the team to its CONCACAF Gold Cup crown.
This is Luis Gil’s first call up to the senior U.S. Men’s National Team. The 20-year-old was a fixture for the U.S. Under-20 National Team, playing every minute for the U.S. in this past summer’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup and notching one goal and one assist in the tournament. Gil played a leading role for the U-20’s during qualification for the World Cup, scoring a pair of goals to help the team to a second-place finish at the 2013 CONCACAF U-20 Championship last February and March in Puebla, Mexico.
Due to their call-ups, Beckerman, Rimando and Gil will miss the first leg of Real Salt Lake’s 2014 preseason, which will take place from Jan. 25-Feb. 1 at the home of the RSL-Arizona Academy at Grande Sports World in Casa Grande, Ariz. The RSL trio will be expected to return to the club and participate in its last two preseason trips to Irvine, Calif. from Feb. 4-14 and Tucson, Ariz. for the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup from Feb. 19-March 1. Real Salt Lake’s full 2014 preseason schedule can be found here.
The USMNT officially qualified for the 2014 FIFA World Cup last September when the Stars-and-Stripes defeated Mexico 2-0 in Columbus and Panama drew 2-2 at Honduras, pushing the U.S. to the top of the CONCACAF Hexagonal group. Beckerman and Rimando were both with the U.S. national team for its qualification, with Beckerman playing a full 90 minutes in the Americans’ win over Mexico. The USMNT finished its World Cup Qualifying cycle in first-place in the CONCACAF Hexagonal with a 2-0 win over Jamaica on Oct. 11 and a thrilling 3-2 win over Panama on Oct. 15 in which Beckerman put in a full 90 minutes. The U.S. has won the CONCACAF Hexagonal in three-straight World Cup Qualifying cycles.
