US Soccer announced their roster for the 32 players who would be called into the January USMNT training camp by Head Coach, Bruce Arena. And two LA Galaxy Players (possibly three) will be in attendance when that camp kicks off on January 10th at StubHub Center.
Sebastian Lleget is making his first appearance with the USMNT. He’s never been called up and Arena, when coaching the LA Galaxy, was always fond of the young midfielder’s game. So it’s not much of a surprise to see him getting that first chance to impress the US coaching staff — incidentally, the same staff he’s been training under since joining the league in 2015.
Lletget has 51 appearances and over 3,500 minutes since joining the LA Galaxy. He’s scored eight goals in Major League Soccer, including seven goals during his debut year, and has tallied 10 assists. This will be a test for the young midfielder as his sophomore season left much to be desired. But he was also adjusting to a new position and the entire team struggled to find any rhythm in 2016. Hopefully, this early start to the season will see Lletget in full fitness prior to the LA Galaxy’s first game on March 4th.
Gyasi Zardes is also making a debut of sorts. Zardes gets called back into US Soccer after a season that saw him break his right foot in August of 2016 and miss out on World Cup Qualifiers. Prior to that injury, Zardes was a mainstay in the US midfield under Jurgen Klinsmann.
Zardes has made 31 appearances for his national team and has scored six times for the Red, White, and Blue. Zardes is returning to where it all started as his first international call-up was in January of 2015.
Finally, Midfielder Jermain Jones will also be in camp for US Soccer. Jones, who most recently played with the Colorado Rapids, is currently unattached to any team in MLS. But the LA Galaxy traded for his rights late last year and are widely expected to sign the 35-year old midfielder before the start of MLS’ preseason.
The January camp is a time for US Men’s National Team Players to gather in the MLS off-season to keep up fitness. This time it will be ahead of more World Cup Qualifiers and the players called in will stay with the team through February and the start of MLS’ pre-season.