A small selection of World Cup hopefuls will begin gathering in Frisco, Texas, on Tuesday as the U.S. formally sets out on the road to Qatar with a “fitness camp” for out-of-season MLS players.
Nine men are on coach Gregg Berhalter’s initial list with more to come, potentially, based on the result of this weekend’s two conference finals. The camp will run until Nov. 5, the date of the MLS Cup final. The 26-man World Cup roster then will be revealed on Nov. 9, with training in Al Rayyan, Qatar, set to kick off on Nov. 14.
The nine players invited to Frisco are:
Goalkeeper: Gabriel Slonina (Chicago Fire/Chelsea)
Defenders: Aaron Long (New York Red Bulls), Shaq Moore (Nashville SC), DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC)
Midfielders: Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders)
Forwards: Paul Arriola (FC Dallas), Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders)
All save Slonina were involved in the Americans’ World Cup qualifying effort, which concluded at the end of March.