U.S. Names Gold Cup Roster

The work, apparently, is never over for the U.S. National Team. Fresh off takings its bows after a stunning 2-0 upset over No. 1-ranked Spain at the Confederations Cup Wednesday, the U.S. was back to work Thursday.

In this case, it was naming a 23-man roster for the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which begins on July 4 in Seattle with a match against Grenada. Of note, only six players on the Gold Cup roster have over 10 caps. On top of that, just Michael Parkhurst and Brian Ching were on the 2007 competition roster, which the U.S. won, punching their ticket to the 2009 Confederations Cup in the process.

Perhaps the most noteworthy roster note is the inclusion of Freddy Adu, who many U.S. fans including myself were hoping coach Bob Bradley would turn the keys over to in the wake of the joint humiliations by Italy and Brazil in the Confederations Cup group stage last week. Hopefully in this less pressurized tournament Adu will get some steady run and the public can see what exactly the much hyped-teenager can actually bring to the table, particularly against the lightweights of CONCACAF.

Oddly enough, Adu, forward Charlie Davies, defender Hearth Pearce and third string keeper Luis Robles are the only carryovers from the current Confederations Cup lineup to the Gold Cup. It's surprising to see young midfielders Sacha Kljestan and Jose Torres each excluded from the Gold Cup roster. Both players failed to impress in limited time in South Africa the last two weeks, but you'd have thought would have at least been in the Gold Cup plans.

No matter, two players who'll make welcome returns to the U.S. fold are defenders Steve Cherundolo and Jimmy Conrad. Cherundolo, the usual first-choice at right back, missed the Confederations Cup due to injury and the affable Conrad has been out of the U.S. picture for the last year or so. The U.S. defense, even without most of its regulars, should be fairly solid with Cherundolo, Conrad, Parkhurst and Pearce serving a respectable back four.

The rest of the linuep is almost entirely MLS players, whom I'm sure their individual clubs will miss dearly during the tournament. How the midfield shakes out is anyone's guess. And this could be Kenny Cooper's last chance to impress Bradley if he wants to be considered for the 2010 World Cup roster.

In wake of the amazing run in the Confederations Cup, the Gold Cup does seem lacking in terms of the drama department. At least it's played on U.S. soil so you have a chance to go out and see a match, if you're lucky, even if 95 percent of the Hereos from Bloemfontein will be at home gaining a well-deserved rest.

GOALKEEPERS (3): Jon Busch (Chicago Fire), Troy Perkins (IK Start), Luis Robles (FC Kaiserslautern)

DEFENDERS (7): Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Jay Heaps (New England Revolution), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Michael Parkhurst (FC Nordsjaellands), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock)

MIDFIELDERS (8): Davy Arnaud (Kansas City Wizards), Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Colin Clark (Colorado Rapids), Sam Cronin (Toronto FC), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Logan Pause (Chicago Fire), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)

FORWARDS (5): Freddy Adu (AS Monaco), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (FC Dallas), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Santino Quaranta (D.C. United)