Every Tournament Match to Be Live Streamed on ussoccerda.com
CHICAGO (Nov. 22, 2017) - U.S. Under-17 Men's National Team head coach John Hackworth has named a 24-player preliminary roster for the 2017 Men's Nike International Friendlies in Lakewood Ranch, Fla. that runs from Nov. 29-Dec. 3. From Nov. 24-Nov. 28 the team will participate in a pre-tournament training camp, giving Hackworth additional opportunities to evaluate players before narrowing the roster down to 20. The four players not selected to the final roster will likely play for their Academy club during the 2017 U.S. Soccer Development Academy Winter Showcase, taking place simultaneously at the Premier Sports Campus, from Nov. 30-Dec. 10.
"To begin the new U-17 cycle with the Nike International Friendlies competing against traditional world powers is a big challenge," Hackworth said. "However, our staff has evaluated these young men, most recently at the CONCACAF U-15 Championship, and we are all looking forward to the chance to work with this talented group."
U.S. U-17 MNT 2017 Nike International Friendlies Preliminary Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (4): Khamari Culcleasure (D.C. United; Alexandria, Va.), John Tyler Harms (Shattuck- Saint Mary's; Whitefish Bay, Wisc.), Damian Las (Chicago Fire; Norridge, Ill.), Kashope
Oladapo (Portland Timbers; Happy Valley, Ore.)
DEFENDERS (7): Axel Alejandre (FC United Soccer Club; Chicago, Ill.), Sebastian Anderson (Colorado Rapids; Highlands Ranch, Co.), George Bello (Atlanta United FC; Douglasville, Ga.),
Mitchell Eise (Sporting Kansas City; Springfield, Mo.), Mason Judge (Chargers Soccer Club; Tampa, Fla.), Kenneth Nielsen (Pateadores; Irvine, Calif.), Joseph Scally (New York City FC; Lake Grove,
N.Y.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Joshua Atencio (Seattle Sounders FC; Bellevue, Wash.), Gianluca Busio (Sporting Kansas City; Greenboro, NC), Adam Saldana (Real So Cal; Panorama City, Calif.), Gilbert
Fuentes Perez (San Jose Earthquakes; Tracy, Calif.), Maximillian Goeggel (VFB Stuttgart; San Francisco, Calif.), Peter Stroud (New York Red Bulls; Chester, NJ)
FORWARDS (7): Julian Gaines (Lonestar Soccer Club; Austin, Tex.), Cade Hagan (Sockers FC; Naperville, Ill.), Diego Lopez (FC Golden State; Chino, Calif.), Daniel Mangarov (Atlanta United FC;
Duluth, Ga.), Alfonso Ocampo Chavez (Seattle Sounders FC; Fresno, Calif.), Dante Sealy (FC Dallas; Frisco, Tex.), Ray Serrano (Seattle Sounders FC; Graham, Wash.)
Development Academy Ties:
The USA's schedule of international opponents for the 2017 rendition of the tournament opens vs. England on Nov. 29 (7 p.m. ET) followed by matches against Netherlands on Dec. 1 (7 p.m. ET) and Brazil on Dec. 3 (5 p.m. ET). All the tournament games will be played at Premier Sports Campus and can be seen live on ussoccerda.com.
2017 Men's Nike International Friendlies Schedule
Wednesday, Nov. 29
Brazil vs. Netherlands, 3:30 p.m. ET
USA vs. England, 7 p.m. ET
Friday, Dec. 1
England vs. Brazil, 3:30 p.m. ET
USA vs. Netherlands, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, Dec. 3
Netherlands vs. England, 1:30 p.m. ET
USA vs. Brazil, 5 p.m. ET
The players who will make up the new U-17 MNT player pool (birth year 2002 or later) competed as U-15 Boys' National Team during 2016 and all of 2017 until this tournament. Like any U-17 Men's National Team at the beginning of their cycle, the players and staff now set their focus on the 2019 CONCACAF U-17 Championship, where the top four teams will qualify for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
In total, the 2002 Boy's National Team player pool has already gathered a total of four times in 2017, including two domestic camps earlier in the year as well as two major international tournaments: the 2017 Torneo delle Nazioni and the 2017 CONCACAF Under-15 Championship.
At the Torneo delle Nazioni, held in Gradisca, Italy, the U.S. defeated Slovenia (4-0) and Russia (2-1) before falling to England (3-2) but, advancing to the semifinals. After bouncing back with a 4-2 victory over Portugal in the semifinals, the U-15 BNT set up a rematch against the Three Lions in the tournament final. A goal from forward Giovanni Reyna in the final minute of regulation ultimately broke a 1-1 deadlock and earned the USA the tournament title.
At the 2017 CONCACAF Under-15 Championship, the USA found a similar stride, defeating Canada (2-0), Trinidad and Tobago (6-0) and Costa Rica (4-1) in the group stage to advance to the semifinals vs. Panama.
READ: U-15 BNT Advances to CONCACAF U-15 Championship Semifinals
Against Panama, the USA took care of business, defeating La Marea Roja 3-0 to earn another title shot; this time against regional rival Mexico. However, the outcome against El Tri went against the U.S. 2-0.
READ: All Systems Go: Men's Youth National Teams Thriving in 2017
At last year's Nike Friendlies, Josh Sargent, Andrew Carleton and Ayo Akinola led the way for the Red, White and Blue, securing victories against Portugal (7-1), Turkey (5-1) and Brazil (3-0) to finish as tournament champs.
Two years before the recent U-17 World Cup Quarterfinalists captured the title, Christian Pulisic, Luca de la Torre, Haji Wright and Josh Perez lead the 1998 birth year to a 4-1 win over Brazil to win the 2013 tournament.
Marking the 17th edition of the Men's Nike International Friendlies, 2017's tournament will once again feature three nations from a rotating field that includes Australia, Brazil, England, France, the Netherlands, Portugal and Turkey. Brazil has attended the tournament every year since 2006, in addition to a 2003 appearance.
International players such as Brazil's Neymar, Philippe Coutinho, Marcelo, the Netherlands' Memphis Depay, and many others have also taken the main stage in the well-regarded international tournament.
Preliminary Roster Notes: