WASHINGTON, DC (July 17, 2008) USSoccerPlayers -- As expected, Brian McBride will make his return to international soccer as a member of the United States Olympic Team as part of the roster named by Peter Nowak on Thursday. McBride last appeared for the US in the 2006 World Cup. He has never played in the Olympics.
“I know a lot of guys have had the chance to play together, but there are the guys who haven’t had that chance – me being one of them,” said McBride. “So, you have to have that melding of styles and understanding. Thankfully Peter is a great coach and has been a great player, so I think he understands the ins and outs of everyone’s mental psyche. Those types of things will be a huge factor for the team in this situation.”
Brad Guzan and Michael Parkhurst join McBride as the three over-age players on the roster.
"After an extensive process of evaluation, we are very excited about the group of players that we have chosen to represent the United States at the Olympic Games,” Nowak said. "It has been a very competitive environment, and we had some tough decisions to make. It's no secret that we have a difficult challenge in front of us with our group, which is one of the most difficult in the tournament. We know that some players are coming in during the off-season, and some are in season so we have to make sure that everyone is on the same page during our preparations. Our senior team plays in a World Cup Qualifier in August, and we wanted to make sure that we have two competitive teams for both the Olympic Games and the World Cup qualifiers.”
2008 U.S. MEN’S OLYMPIC TEAM ROSTER BY POSITION
GOALKEEPERS (2): Brad Guzan (Chivas USA), Chris Seitz (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS (5): Patrick Ianni (Houston Dynamo), Michael Orozco (San Luis), Michael Parkhurst (New England Revolution), Nathan Sturgis (Real Salt Lake), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Danny Szetela (Brescia Calcio)
FORWARDS (4): Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Brian McBride (out of contract), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew)
