Matt Besler And Jon Kempin Join USMNT For January Camp
The United States Men’s National Team and Sporting Kansas City have announced that Defender Matt Besler and Goalkeeper Jon Kempin have been selected to join the U.S. team for their January training camp that takes place from January 12th through February 8th in Carson, California.
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The January training camp will be highlighted by a game against Chile at Estadio El Teniente in Rancagua, Chile on January 28th, and also a game against Panama at the Stub Hub Center in Carson, California on February 8th, which will be a finale for the camp.
The 27 year-old defender, Matt Besler is one of the more veteran players selected for the camp. Besler made his debut in 2013 and has made 23 appearances in his international career, with a national team high of eleven starts in 2014, including starts in all four of the U.S. national team’s 2014 FIFA World Cup Games in Brazil.
According to Kurt Austin of SportingKC.com, the Overland Park, Kansas native, Besler commented on being selected for the January camp.
"“This is another big year ahead of us in 2015. The January Camp is always a good way to set the tone for the upcoming campaign and establish a positive rhythm within the national team environment. It is an important time of the year which brings a welcomed new wave of excitement and energy.”"
The 21 year-old Goalkeeper, Jon Kempin is joining the senior U.S. Men’s National team for the first time in his international career. Kempin has represented the U.S youth teams from the under-14 level all the way to the under-23 level.
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Kempin looks to build on his breakout 2014 season which saw him make his first start in a Major League Soccer match, which made him the youngest Goalkeeper to start a MLS match in Sporting KC club history. During his relief of injured Goalkeepers Andy Gruenebaum and Eric Kronberg, Kempin earned back to back save of the week awards for MLS. Kempin was also named the MVP of the 2014 MLS Chipotle Homegrown Game.
Kurt Austin of SportingKC.com also caught up with Kempin for comment on his first ever U.S. Senior team call up.
"“I am extremely honored to be able to represent my country in my first senior team call up,” Kempin said. “I am excited to work with some of the best players in the world and learn from the likes of Nick Rimando and Sean Johnson. The experience I will get from working with Jurgen (Klinsmann) and his coaching staff will be very valuable to my career. My dream is to represent the United States in the Olympics and World Cups. I feel like being invited to the January Camp is one step closer to achieving those dreams.”"
The notable snub from Sporting KC is Midfielder Graham Zusi who was featured in several U.S. national team games in 2014, including joining the team for the 2014 World Cup. Zusi’s absence could just mean that U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, wanted to bring in several youth guys to check out the future of the squad. While it is not worth looking too much into at the Junuary camp, it is certainly something to keep an eye on in the future.