Bradley Names Roster for Poland

Dempsey Among 18 Players on Trip

March 24, 2008

Dempsey and the rest of coach Bob Bradley’s roster arrived in Poland Sunday and will train there all week in preparation for Wednesday’s match. Kickoff against Poland is set for 8:30 p.m. local time (3:30 p.m. ET), and the match will be broadcast live on Fox Soccer Channel.

Former Rev Clint Dempsey was one of 18 players called to face Poland.(CHRIS ADUAMA/aduama.com)

“This is an excellent opportunity to gather a majority of our European-based players and continue to make evaluations prior to the start of World Cup qualifying,” said Bradley, who is presiding over a four-match unbeaten run for the United States. “We have established a core group of players, and want to build on principles we have established over the last year as we approach the critical schedule for qualifying this summer. Starting with Poland, we have arranged a series of challenging matches that will help to prepare our team for what lies ahead.”

U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra is one of nine players who join the U.S. roster from England, a group that includes his Fulham teammates Dempsey and Eddie Johnson. Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard enters in fine form as his side sits in fifth place of the English Premier League and within striking distance of a place in next year’s UEFA Champions League. West Ham defender Jonathan Spector is quickly shifting gears into the full national team mode, having started in the U.S. Under-23 MNT’s 3-0 semifinal victory against Canada on March 20 in Nashville, Tenn.

The teams have met six times previously on Polish soil, the U.S. holding a 3-2-1 advantage. Their most recent encounter in Poland came March 31, 2004, in Plock, where DaMarcus Beasley scored the lone goal to hand the USA its first victory on European soil in six years. The teams last met in 2006 in Germany during the “Blizzard of Kaiserslautern,” this time Dempsey netting the solo strike in the 1-0 win at the Fritz-Walter-Stadion, site of the USA’s 1-1 draw against eventual World Champions Italy in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The U.S. holds an all-time record of 6-7-2 against Poland, having faced the Eastern European side more times than any other country in Europe.

The match in Poland represents the first of three friendlies the U.S. will play on European soil prior to the start of qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The USA will travel to face England on May 28 in London, before moving to continental Europe to play fourth-ranked Spain on June 4 at the Estadio El Sardinero in Santander.

The U.S. begins the quest to qualify for their sixth-consecutive World Cup finals when they take on the winner of the first round series between Barbados and Dominica.

U.S. Team Roster by Position:

GOALKEEPERS (2): Marcus Hahnemann (Reading FC), Tim Howard (Everton FC)

DEFENDERS (7): Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Jay DeMerit (Watford FC), Cory Gibbs (Charlton Athletic), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege), Heath Pearce (Hansa Rostock), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United)

MIDFIELDERS (5): Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Eddie Lewis (Derby County)

FORWARDS (4): Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Eddie Johnson (Fulham FC), Josh Wolff (1860 Munich)

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