4. YOUTH: Rongen to take 11 pros to Busan U-20 tourney
- by Soccer America , Aug 22, 2006
The pros are defenders Carlos Borja (Chivas USA), Erik Hort (Sparta Prague/Czech Republic), Blake Wagner (FC Dallas), Tim Ward (Columbus Crew), midfielders Nikolas Besagno (Real Salt Lake), Miguel Gonzalez (New England Revolution), Sonny Guadarrama (Santos/Mexico), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas) and forwards Josmer Altidore (N.Y. Red Bulls), David Arvizu (N.Y. Red Bulls) and Preston Zimmerman (Hamburg/Germany).
The Busan roster also includes six high school players -- Bryan Arguez, Corben Bone, Cameron Brown, Brandon Bumpas, Kyle Davies and William Koss -- because Rongen was unable to call in the majority of players in college as they are just beginning their season. UCLA freshman goalkeeper Brian Perk is the only college player that is included on the roster.
The U-20 pool is one of the deepest in U.S. history. More than 20 U-20 prospects play on professional clubs in the United States and abroad. Other prominent U-20 candidates include Freddy Adu, who has played on two other U.S. U-20 teams at the World Youth Championship, Columbus Crew midfielder Danny Szetela and Nathan Sturgis, who played with Adu at the 2005 U-20 world championship in the Netherlands, Michael Bradley, who plays for Dutch club Heerenveen, and 19-year-old forward Johann Smith, who was on the bench Saturday for Bolton Wanderers' opening game of the 2006-07 English Premier League season.
