Dave Sarachan has been the Interim U.S. Men’s National Coach for the past year. Officially he does not have interim on his job description in the 2018 media guide.
But everyone knows he has been a “caretaker” national coach after serving as Bruce Arena‘s assistant after a 2-1 loss to Trinidad & Tobago knocked the USA out of a 2018 World Cup berth in Russia. He’s been a worthy replacement as US Soccer decides on hiring the next national coach.
Sarachan may have only two more opportunities to be the man in charge. He has announced a 23-man roster for a two-game trip this month to Europe. His young squad will play England in London’s Wembley Stadium on Nov. 15 and Italy in a neutral venue in Belgium on Nov. 20.
Christian Pulisic, who has missed all but one USA international friendly this year, is expected to be available for both games, along as young talents Josh Sargent, Tim Weah and Tyler Adams.
Most on the roster have been regular roster callups by Sarachan, who has chosen to go with a younger player pool and not call in many veterans with greater experience.
Sarachan began 2018 by saying this would be a year of opportunity and experience for players, and with the final matches approaching he has lived up to that promise. A total of 50 players have earned at least one cap in the nine matches so far, including 19 first-timers.
Remarkably, 34 of those players have accumulated 10 caps or less. Along the way, a total of 12 players have appeared in five or more matches. With all that, the MNT has still posted a more than respectable 3-3-3 record, including a tie against eventual World Cup champion France and a win against regional rival Mexico.
While most players are playing with European teams, six on the 23-man roster have recently been active in the Major League Soccer postseason: Adams, Wil Trapp, Brad Guzan, Zack Steffen, Jorge Villafana, Darlington Nagbe and Aaron Long. Nagbe and Villafana are two of the returning faces for the November friendlies, while Fulham’s Luca de la Torre is back after earning his first cap in June against the Republic of Ireland.
Seventeen players are 23 years or younger, while 18 players have earned 10 caps or fewer. Nine players are age-eligible for the 2020 Summer Olympics: Adams, Reggie Cannon, Cameron Carter-Vickers, de la Torre, Weston McKennie, Pulisic, Antonee Robinson, Sargent and Weah.
The 28 players on the roster ply their trade in nine different countries: USA (11), Germany (6), Belgium, England and France (2 each); Canada, Spain, Sweden and Wales (1 each). Guzan (59 caps), DeAndre Yedlin (56) and Bobby Wood (43) are the senior-most players.
DETAILED ROSTER BY POSITION (Club; Caps/Goals):
GOALKEEPERS (3): Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC; 59/0), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge/BEL; 2/0), Zack Steffen (Columbus Crew; 6/0)
DEFENDERS (10): John Brooks (Wolfsburg/GER; 35/3), Reggie Cannon (FC Dallas; 1/0), Cameron Carter-Vickers (Swansea City/WAL; 6/0), Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls; 1/0), Matt Miazga (Nantes/FRA; 10/1), Shaq Moore (Reus Deportiu/ESP; 3/0), Antonee Robinson (Wigan Athletic/ENG; 6/0), Jorge Villafaña (Portland Timbers; 19/0), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United/ENG; 56/0), Walker Zimmerman (LAFC; 3/1)
MIDFIELDERS (13): Kellyn Acosta (Colorado Rapids; 21/2), Tyler Adams (New York Red Bulls; 7/1), Luca de la Torre (Fulham/ENG; 1/0), Marky Delgado (Toronto FC/CAN; 5/0), Romain Gall (Malmö/SWE; 0/0), Julian Green (Greuther Fürth/GER; 14/4), Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy; 3/1), Weston McKennie (Schalke/GER; 6/1), Darlington Nagbe (Atlanta United FC; 25/1), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 21/9), Kenny Saief (Anderlecht/BEL; 3/0), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC; 9/0), Tim Weah (Paris Saint-Germain/FRA; 7/1)
FORWARDS (2): Josh Sargent (Werder Bremen/GER; 5/2), Bobby Wood (Hannover 96/GER; 43/13