Real Salt Lake midfielder Luis Gil arrived at RSL's preseason camp in Casa Grande, Ariz. late on Tuesday night, joining the team after spending the last week or so in camp with the U.S. U-20 national team in Puebla, Mexico.
Claret-and-Cobalt Head Coach Jason Kreis gave Gil the day off on Wednesday, with the California-native watching his teammates from the sideline in the team's lone practice of the day. The 19-year-old midfielder is expected to start training with RSL on Thursday, when the team will have its second two-a-day session of the preseason.
Unfortunately for RSL, Gil won't be with the team all that long, as he's expected to leave the Claret-and-Cobalt in early-February for a U-20 training camp ahead of the Feb. 18-March 3 CONCACAF U-20 Championships in Puebla. The top four teams in that tournament will qualify for the U-20 FIFA World Cup, which will take place in Turkey from June 21-July 13.
We caught up with Gil towards the end of the day on Wednesday, talking to him about his offseason experiences with the U-20's and his expectations for himself in what could be a very big 2013 season. We'll publish written and video features off of those interviews later in the week.
