:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46581432/GettyImages-460782538.0.jpg)
When Geoff Cameron's name was left off recent friendly rosters for the United States, many thought he had a minor injury or he just needed the rest. Then when he was left off of the 35-man provisional Gold Cup roster those conservative guesses quickly turned into panic.
Had Cameron and Jurgen Klinsmann had a falling out? Did Klinsmann just not rate him anymore?
It turns out it was none of the above. Cameron told ESPN's Soccer Today podcast that Stoke City requested that he skip this year's Gold Cup to rest and recuperate for the upcoming Premier League season.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/GeoffCameron">@GeoffCameron</a> telling us that Stoke City asked that he skip this summer’s Gold Cup to get healthy for the start of the EPL season.</p>— ESPN's Soccer Today (@ESPNSoccerToday) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNSoccerToday/status/612631337913069568">June 21, 2015</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Cameron has logged a ton of minutes for club and country over the last four years. Last summer he started in three of the four games the U.S. played at the World Cup. While Klinsmann would presumably love to have him as an option for the Gold Cup, having him rest for the summer could be more helpful to his longevity going forward.
In addition to Matt Besler and Omar Gonzalez, inexperienced center backs John Brooks and Ventura Alvarado will have to fill the void that Cameron leaves this summer.