U.S. World Cup roster revealed: Buddle, Gomez, Findley all selected

i-bef699c2b936468aa7b63ea9257ec3d8-usteam26a.jpgFrom left, top row, are midfielder Stuart Holden, forward Herculez Gomez, forward Edson Buddle, forward Jozy Altidore, forward Robbie Findley, goalkeeper Tim Howard, midfielder Maurice Edu, midfielder Michael Bradley, defender Jonathan Spector, goalkeeper Brad Guzan, defender Oguchi Onyewu, defender Jay DeMerit, defender Clarence Goodson, goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann, midfielder Clint Dempsey. From left, at bottom, are midfielder Jose Torres, midfielder Benny Feilhaber, midfielder Ricardo Clark, midfielder Landon Donovan, midfielder DaMarcus Beasley, defender Carlos Bocanegra, defender Steve Cherundolo, and defender Jonathan Bornstein. (AP Photo).

Here’s who did NOT make the squad:

Defenders: Heath Pearce, Chad Marshall

Midfielders: Alejandro Bedoja, Robbie Rogers, Sacha Kljestan

Forwards: Brian Ching, Eddie Johnson

You think the performances in that game last night mattered – oh, yeah.

And here are complete details on the 23-player squad that makes up the World Cup roster.

Coach Bob Bradley specifically addressed the inclusion of Buddle and Gomez on ESPN, observing that their form will come in “handy” in South Africa: “

“Both have been in great form, scoring a lot of goals this year.”

i-71e4120b489d2c55ad15906d7e67c96f-superherc.jpgSuperherc: faster than a speeding last-minute selection, Gomez makes U.S. World Cup squad (Photo: AFP/Getty Images).

And here’s more on Buddle and Gomez via AP:

The 29-year-old Buddle didn’t quite believe it when Bradley congratulated him at 2 a.m. Wednesday.

“I thought he was messing around. I didn’t know. It was too late,” he said.

Gomez might have faced even longer odds to make the squad after his contract was not renewed last year by Kansas City in MLS. But he went to Puebla of the Mexican league and tied for the scoring lead with 10 goals in 14 appearances.

“I wasn’t good enough for the Wizards last year, so to be where I am today is amazing,” Gomez said.

Bradley praised Buddle, Gomez and Beasley for taking advantage of their opportunities.

“One player that I felt fits into that category is Herculez Gomez,” Bradley said. “He’s worked hard to get to this point.”

The most burning matter of debate: who agrees/disagrees with the inclusion of the speedy Findley over the hard-working Ching?

What do you think?

Updated

Here’s Rogers’ reaction via Twitter:

Obviously gutted but thanks for all the support and I will be rooting for the US no matter what!!! Life is awesome!

He’s extremely unlucky after a pretty strong performance last night; personally I would have selected him over Beasley, but I’m guessing Rogers’ lack of versatility worked against him.

A decent-sized Southern California contingent on the team nonetheless:

*Carlos Bocanegra from Alta Loma, RC United and Rennes (France)

*Jonathan Bornstein from Los Alamitos, Irvine Strikers and Chivas USA

*Steve Cherundolo from San Diego, Nomads and Hanover 96 (Germany)

*Landon Donovan from Redlands, California Heat and LA Galaxy

*Maurice Edu from Fontana, Mission Viejo Pateadores and Rangers (Scotland)

*Benny Feilhaber from Irvine, Irvine Strikers and AGF Aarhus (Denmark)

Also, it should be noted Herculez Gomez is a Los Angeles native, although he grew up in Las Vegas.

Oh, and although Michael Bradley is listed as being from Manhattan Beach that’s not really accurate; he grew up on the East Coast and was belatedly listed as being from the South Bay after his parents moved here when Bob took the Chivas USA job.

And, of course, among those omitted, Rogers grew up in Rolling Hills Estates, Kljestan in Huntington Beach and Marshall in Riverside.

From the Galaxy today:

Buddle and Donovan will miss at least the Galaxy’s next three games, which will all be played before Major League Soccer takes a two-week break for the group stage of the tournament. If the United States advances beyond the group stages, the pair will miss at least one more regular season game with the Galaxy.

Which reminds me: have you entered our World Cup contest yet, with prizes on offer from Alpine Village near Torrance and Chivas USA and other sponsors? Click here for more info.

Noted

DaMarcus Beasley wasn’t the only member of his family to mark a soccer comeback today:

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas City Wizards have signed midfielder Jamar Beasley and waived midfielder Igor Kostrov.

The 30-year-old Beasley has spent his last seven years playing indoor soccer, including three years with the Kansas City Comets before the team folded. Terms were not disclosed Wednesday.

In 1998, Beasley signed a Major League Soccer contract with the New England Revolution straight out of high school. At the time he was the youngest player to ever sign with the league.

After leaving Kansas City he went across the state to St. Louis, where he played with the
Steamers in 2005 and 2006. He has been with the Rockford Rampage since 2008.

His brother is DaMarcus Beasley, who is on the U.S. national team.

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About Nick Green

South Bay-based Los Angeles News Group soccer columnist and blogger Nick Green writes at the 100 Percent Soccer blog at www.insidesocal.com/soccer and craft beer at the Beer Goggles blog at www.insidesocal.com/beer. Cheers!