Andi Herzog calls in 24 players for final set of U-23 friendlies ahead of Olympic qualifying

With Olympic qualifying set to begin in October, the United States under-23 national team have just two more friendlies to play in preparation. Head coach Andi Herzog has called in 24 players for this final camp. The camp will be held in Manchester, England from August 30-September 8, with friendlies against England (Sept. 3) and Qatar (Sept. 8).

Some big names have been left off the roster, while some of the players that impressed with the U-20 team in the Summer have been called upon.

The two most recognizable names to be omitted from the roster are forwards Julian Green and Jordan Morris. Green has elected to stay with Bayern this season and has been sent down to the reserves to get playing time. He scored his first goal of the season recently, but it wasn't enough to earn him a call up for these friendlies.

Morris spent the summer recovering from hernia surgery and is just about to begin the college season with Stanford. Perhaps his absence is a timing issue rather than one of choice.

A large contingent from the U-20 team that performed admirably at the Under-20 World Cup this summer has been called in by Herzog.

Most notably, the dominant center back pairing of Matt Miazga and Cameron Carter-Vickers have both earned the call. Their spectacular play in New Zealand had many fans and pundits drooling over the possibilities of their future partnership. The U-20's only conceded one goal in four matches when they were paired together in the tournament.

The midfield partnership of Gedion Zelalem and Emerson Hyndman have also been called upon for these two friendlies. Both young and very talented, they had an up and down tournament this summer.

Zack Steffen, starting goalkeeper whose heroics nearly lifted the U.S. to the semifinals, made the cut. As did the star forward of the team Rubio Rubin.

It appears that Herzog has tried to call in his best possible roster mixing current cycle U-23 players with the best U-20 players available to him. With a few exceptions based on injury or circumstance, this could very well be the first choice set of players for the Olympic qualifying team.

GOALKEEPERS (3): Cody Cropper (MK Dons; Maple Grove, Minn.), Ethan Horvath (Molde; Highlands Ranch, Colo.), Zack Steffen (Freiburg; Downington, Pa.).

DEFENDERS (8): Cameron Carter-Vickers (Tottenham Hotspur; Westcliff on Sea, England), Matt Miazga (New York Red Bulls; Clifton, N.J.), Eric Miller (Montreal Impact; Woodbury, Minn.), Boyd Okwuonu (Real Salt Lake; Edmund, Okla.), Shane O'Neill (Apollon Limassol; Boulder, Colo.), William Packwood (Unattached; Concord, Mass.), Dillon Serna (Colorado Rapids; Brighton, Colo.), Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif).

MIDFIELDERS (8): Gboly Ariyibi (Chesterfield; Arlington County, Va.), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake; Garden Grove, Calif.), Emerson Hyndman (Fulham; Dallas, Tex.), Benji Joya (Club Necaxa; San Jose, Calif.), Marc Pelosi (San Jose Earthquakes; Sunnyvale, Calif.), Matt Polster (Chicago Fire; Milwaukee, Wisc.), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew; Gahanna, Ohio), Gedion Zelalem (Rangers; Bethesda, Md.).

FORWARDS (5): Alonso Hernandez (C.D. Juarez; El Paso, Texas), Jerome Kiesewetter (VfB Stuttgart; Berlin, Germany), Mario Rodriguez (Borussia Mönchengladbach; North Hollywood, Calif.), Rubio Rubin (Utrecht; Beaverton, Ore.), Maki Tall (Scion; Washington, D.C.).