CHICAGO (Oct. 27, 2008) -- U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team head coach Thomas Rongen has named 18 players that will travel to Madrid, Spain from Nov. 15-23. The U.S. will play friendlies against reserve teams from Real Madrid (Nov. 19), Athletico Madrid (Nov. 20) and Rayo Vallecano to round out the trip on Nov. 22.

The squad boasts nine professional players who play in seven different leagues around the world, including a pair from Germany’s Hertha Berlin in Bryan Arguez and Alfredo Morales and a duo from Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas in Josh Lambo and Anthony Wallace. Tristan Bowen of the Los Angeles Galaxy, Jorge Flores of Chivas USA and Abdusalam Ibrahim from Toronto FC round out the MLS contingent.

All five of the domestically-based youth players play for clubs from the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. Gale Agbossoumonde (IMG), Anthony Arena (Crossfire Premier), goalkeeper Bill Hamid (D.C. United Academy), Josh Hernandez (FC Dallas Juniors) and Zarek Valentin (PA Classics) each represent a different Academy club.

The U-20 Men’s National Team is preparing for CONCACAF Under-20 World Cup qualifying, which will take place in Trinidad early in 2009.

Player	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Birthdate	Hometown	Club
Agbossoumonde, Gale	D	6-2	185	11/17/91	Syracuse, N.Y.	IMG Academy
Arena, Anthony	D	5-11	160	08/03/90	Kenmore, Wash.	Crossfire Premier
Arguez, Bryan	M	6-2	175	01/13/89	Miami, Fla.	Hertha Berlin (Germany)
Bernardo, Vincenzo	F	5-6	145	05/22/90	Madison, N.J.	SSC Napoli (Italy)
Bowen, Tristan	F	5-11	165	01/30/91	Van Nuys, Calif.	Los Angeles Galazy
Davies, Kyle	D	5-10	160	04/11/89	Danville, Calif.	Southampton FC (England)
Flores, Jorge	M	5-11	150	09/16/89	Anaheim, Calif.	Chivas USA (MLS)
Garza, Gregory	M	5-7	140	08/16/91	Grapevine, Texas	Sporting Lisbon (Portugal)
Hamid, Bill	GK	6-3	225	11/25/90	Anandale, Va.	D.C. United Academy
Hernandez, Josh	M	5-9	145	08/09/90	Dallas, Texas	FC Dallas Juniors
Ibrahim, Abdusalam	F	6-0	155	08/15/91	Richfield, Minn.	Toronto FC (MLS)
Jeffrey, Jared	M	5-10	170	06/14/90	Richardson, Texas	Club Brugge (Belgium)
Lambo, Josh	GK	6-0	205	11/19/90	Middleton, Wis.	FC Dallas (MLS)
Morales, Alfredo	M	6-0	160	05/12/90	Berlin, Germany	Hertha Berlin (Germany)
Nazzani, Giuseppe	M	5-10	170	06/27/90	Reggio Emilia, Italy	Bologna FC (Italy)
Torres, Jose	F	6-2	180	05/28/89	Coronado, Calif.	Loros de Colima (Mexico)
Valentin, Zarek	D	5-9	145	08/06/91	Lancaster, Calif.	PA Classics
Wallace, Anthony	D	5-11	165	01/26/89	St. Petersburg, Fla.	FC Dallas (MLS)

Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Bill Hamid (Anandale, Va.; D.C. United Academy), Josh Lambo (Middleton, Wis.; FC Dallas)
DEFENDERS (5): Gale Agbossoumonde (Syracuse, N.Y.; IMG Academy), Anthony Arena (Kenmore, Wash.; Crossfire Premier), Kyle Davies (Daniville, Calif.; Southampton FC), Zarek Valentin (Lancaster, Pa.; PA Classics), Anthony Wallace (St. Petersburg, Fla.; FC Dallas)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Bryan Arguez (Miami; Hertha Berlin), Jorge Flores (Anaheim, Calif.; Chivas USA), Gregory Garza (Grapevine, Texas; Sporting Lisbon), Josh Hernandez (Dallas, Texas; FC Dallas Juniors), Jared Jeffrey (Richardson, Texas; Club Brugge), Alfredo Morales (Berlin; Hertha Berlin), Giuseppe Nazzani (Reggio Emilia, Italy; Bologna FC)
FORWARDS (4): Vincenzo Bernardo (Madison, N.J.; SSC Napoli), Tristan Bowen (Van Nuys, Calif.; Los Angeles Galaxy), Abdusalam Ibrahim (Richfield, Minn.; Toronto FC), Jose Torres (Coronado, Calif.; Loros de Colina)

 

U.S. Under-20 Men's National Team Staff

Head Coach:	Thomas Rongen	Sewalls Point, Fla.
Assistant Coach:	Dave Dir	Dallas, Texas
Assistant Coach:	Juan Carlos Michia	Miami, Fla.
Goalkeeper Coach:	Tim Mulqueen	Lakewood Ranch, Fla.
Team Doctor:	Dr. Mel Hayashi	Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Athletic Trainer:	Forrest Pecha	Atlanta, Ga.
Equipment Coordinator:	Marthell Vasquez	Long Beach, Calif.
Team Coordinator	Jon Fleishman	Redondo Beach, Calif.