Jurgen Klinsmann has announced the USA squad for a friendly match against Mexico on 15th of August. There are 23 players in the squad. There are some new faces in the squad including Matt Besler and Steven Beitashour. These two players might get a chance to play their first match for USA on Wednesday. Some experienced players like Jermaine Jones and Landon Donovan have retained their place in the side. Clint Dempsey has not been included in the squad and this is a big surprise. Dempsey has been a superstar for USA since the last few years and his exclusion from the squad was not expected. But, it seems that Klinsmann wants to try out some young players. So, he decided to sideline Dempsey for this match.
There are three goal keepers in the side including Nick Rimando, Tim Howard and Sean Johnson. The Mexico team has performed brilliantly in the Olympics and won the Gold medal by defeating Brazil in the final. So, it would not be easy for the American players to compete against a confident Mexico team. On the other hand, the performance of the USA national team has not been good in the recent times. The USA team wasn’t able to qualify for the London Olympics.
On being asked about the chances of USA in the upcoming match, Klinsmann said that the players of Mexico are in fine form at the moment and on top of that, they would be playing on their home soil. So, it would be tough for the USA team to win the match. But, if the USA players play up to their potential, they might pull off an upset. On being asked about Dempsey’s exclusion from the squad, Klinsmann said that Dempsey has been a great player for USA over the years. But, it is very important to build a team for the future. So, Dempsey has been rested and some youngsters are included in the side.