SANDY, Utah (Tues., May 9, 2017) – U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team Head Coach Tab Ramos has named four Real Salt Lake players and a fifth product of the Real Salt Lake Academy to the roster for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Korea Republic, which runs from Sat., May 20 through Sun., June 11.
RSL quartet DF Danny Acosta, DF Justen Glad, FW Sebastian Saucedo and FW Brooks Lennon all will travel with the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 champions for the World Cup, as will RSL Academy alum DF Aaron Herrera, currently playing at the University of New Mexico. Acosta, Glad, Saucedo and Lennon comprise nearly half of the nine active Major League Soccer players named to Ramos' 21-player roster.
“We are very excited to once again provide a great competitive opportunity to our players and are looking forward to heading to Korea Republic,” Ramos said. “As always there were some extremely tough decisions to make. This is a talented age group.”
Acosta, Saucedo and Lennon have all featured prominently for Real Salt Lake through the first 10 matches of the regular season, while Glad has been working his way back from an injury suffered in the final match of the CONCACAF U-20 Championships on Sun., March 5.
Acosta has started in all four of his appearances at right back, totaling 341 minutes for his first MLS action after spending the 2016 season on loan to Real Monarchs in the USL. Saucedo has five starts in his eight appearances, logging 448 minutes. While he is still in search of his first MLS goal, he has 17 shots to his credit thus far this season. Lennon has played all 90 minutes in each of his eight starts on the wing, scoring the late game-winner against the Colorado Rapids on April 15 for his first MLS goal.
The U.S. team departs for its initial training camp in Japan this Wednesday, May 10, where remaining players will meet the group prior to the team’s arrival in Korea Republic on Wednesday, May 17. The U.S. was drawn into Group F with Ecuador, Senegal and Saudi Arabia. The team opens group play against Ecuador on May 22 (2 a.m. MT), followed by matches with Senegal on May 25 (5 a.m. MT) and Saudi Arabia on May 28 (3 a.m. MT). The first two games will be played at Incheon Stadium in Incheon, while the third and final group game will be played at Daejeon World Cup Stadium in Daejeon. All of the U.S.’s group matches will be broadcast live on FS1.
Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Jonathan Klinsmann (University of California; Newport Beach, Calif.), J.T. Marcinkowski (Georgetown; Alamo, Calif.), Brady Scott (De Anza Force; Petaluma, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (7):Danny Acosta (Real Salt Lake; Salt Lake City, Utah), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur FC; Westcliff-on-Sea, England), Marlon Fossey (Fulham FC; Surbiton, England), Justen Glad (Real Salt Lake; Tucson, Ariz.), Aaron Herrera (University of New Mexico; Las Cruces, N.M.), Erik Palmer-Brown (Sporting Kansas City; Lee's Summit, Mo.), Tommy Redding (Orlando City SC; Oviedo, Fla.)
MIDFIELDERS (5): Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls; Wappingers Falls, N.Y.), Luca De La Torre (Fulham FC; San Diego, Calif.), Derrick Jones (Philadelphia Union; Philadelphia, Pa.), Eryk Williamson (University of Maryland; Alexandria, Va.), Gedion Zelalem (Arsenal FC; Bethesda, Md.)
FORWARDS (6): Jeremy Ebobisse (Portland Timbers; Bethesda, Md.), Lagos Kunga (Atlanta United FC Academy; Tucker, Ga.), Brooks Lennon (Real Salt Lake; Paradise Valley, Ariz.), Emmanuel Sabbi (Unattached; Columbus, Ohio), Josh Sargent (Scott Gallagher Missouri; O'Fallen, Mo.), Sebastian Saucedo (Real Salt Lake; Park City, Utah)
CONCACAF U-20 QUALIFYING RECAP:
The U-20 MNT capped its qualifying run at the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship with five-straight wins. After opening the tournament with a 1-0 loss against Panama, the team went on to defeat Haiti and St. Kitts and Nevis by matching 4-1 score lines, earning first place in Group B and advancement to the Classification Stage. There, the U-20 MNT used a 29th minute header from Erik-Palmer Brown to earn a 1-0 victory against rivals Mexico, breaking El Trí’s 20-match unbeaten streak at the CONCACAF U-20 Championship. Ramos’ side followed up that victory with a 2-1 win against El Salvador to punch its ticket to Korea Republic and also advance to the tournament Final against Honduras.
Having played to a 0-0 draw, the U.S. was perfect in converting its penalty kicks, defeating Los Catrachos 5-3 in the shootout to clinch its first regional crown at U-20 level. Following the match, goalkeeper Jonathan Klinsmann, defenders Marlon Fossey and RSL DF Justen Glad, midfielder Erik Palmer-Brown and RSL forward Brooks Lennon earned Best XI honors, with Palmer-Brown and Klinsmann receiving the Golden Ball and Golden Glove awards, respectively. Fifteen players that were part of the U-20 MNT’s successful qualifying run are part of the final World Cup roster.
