The United States Men's National Team is ready to defend their Gold Cup title, looking to win the tournament back-to-back. The USMNT will begin their quest on July 7th in Frisco, Texas as they take on Honduras.
The USMNT took home the title in 2013 after defeating Panama by a score of 1-0 with Brek Shea being the lone goal scorer. This made up for back-to-back defeats to bitter rivals Mexico, and also giving them their first Gold Cup title since 2007, when Benny Feilhaber scored the game winner as they defeated Mexico by a score of 2-1.
They are back and ready to take home to trophy yet again. Earlier this year, head coach Jurgen Klinsmann announced the 23 man roster, that will represent the USA in the tournament. The roster includes 12 players from the domestic league, (Major League Soccer). Players such as Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman from Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders' Clint Dempsey, and Toronto FC dynamic duo, Jozy Altidore and the new "Captain America," Michael Bradley. The rest ply their allegiance to teams in England, Germany, Mexico, France, and the Netherlands. The 23 man roster goes as followers
Goalkeepers (3): Brad Guzan, Nick Rimando, William Yarbrough
Defenders (8): Ventura Alvarado, John Brooks, Timothy Chandlar, Brad Evans, Greg Garza, Omar Gonzalez, Tim Ream, Deandre Yedlin
Midfielders (7): Kyle Beckerman, Alejandro Bedoya, Michael Bradley, Mix Diskerud, Fabian Johnson, Alfredo Morales, Graham Zusi
Forwards (5): Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Aron Johannsson, Chris Wondolowski, Gyasi Zardes.
As the team prepares, they also recently won their last game, defeating Guatemala by a score of 4-0. The USMNT were drawn into Group A, along with Honduras, Haiti, and 2013 Gold Cup Runner-up, Panama.
Here's a look at the tournament schedule for the United States:
July 7th - USA - Honduras 9:00pm EST (Frisco, Texas)
July 10th - USA - Haiti 8:30pm EST (Foxborough, Massachusettes)
July 13th - USA - Panama 9:30pm EST (Kansas City, Missouri)
If the USMNT can have successful run, like they did back in 2013, it is highly likely that they will win the Gold Cup back-to-back.