USA U-20 national team roster named as 2023 World Cup cycle begins

MLSsoccer staff

Mikey Varas, newly-named head coach of the United States Under-20 men’s national team, has assembled a 23-player roster to begin preparations for the 2022 Concacaf U-20 Championship, which will serve as qualification to the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The US U-20s will compete in the 2021 Revelations Cup against Brazil (Nov. 10), Colombia (Nov. 13) and Mexico (Nov. 16) – all games will be broadcast on TUDN. Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2004 are eligible for this World Cup cycle.

The roster includes 17 players currently at MLS clubs, including 22 Under 22 presented by BODYARMOR picks Cade Cowell (No. 7, San Jose Earthquakes), Caden Clark (No. 8, New York Red Bulls) and Justin Che (No. 16, FC Dallas). Other MLS-based highlights are Chicago Fire FC goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina, Seattle Sounders midfielder Danny Leyva and the Philadelphia Union trio of Jack McGlynn, Paxten Aaronson and Quinn Sullivan.

“One of my strongest core values is to compete, to always embrace competition, and we’re getting into that right off the bat,” said Varas, who was most recently an assistant coach for FC Dallas under former head coach Luchi Gonzalez. “I want to get to know the group as well as I possibly can in the time that we have and lay a foundation for the type of culture that the U-20s are going to have leading into qualification.

“That culture is going to be everything to create the feeling that we’re on a mission. We’re going to evaluate where our strengths are and how we can capitalize on those strengths, and understand the areas we have to improve."

After the COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread cancellations across the sports world, this event marks the U-20 USMNT’s first international action since twice facing Mexico in January 2020. The full roster can be found below.