U.S. Pre-World Cup camp roster unveiled

Charlies Davies lost his race against time to get fit for the tournament.

Big SoCal representation including the Galaxy’s Edson Buddle, Los Angeles native Herculez Gomez, Rolling Hills Estates’ Robbie Rogers of the Columbus Crew, Chivas USA’s Jonathan Bornstein of Los Alamitos and Sacha Kljestan of Huntington Beach, Fontana’s Maurice Edu and Riverside’s Chad Marshall.

Here’s U.S. Coach Bob Bradley on his selection of Buddle and Gomez:

“Both Edson and Herculez have had a very good season. Both have helped their teams a great deal. Edson has been the hottest goal scorer in MLS and has helped the Galaxy get off to a great start. Herculez was an important player with Puebla and scored a lot of goals. We feel that both of them have shown enough for us to take a look at them as we start the camp.”

Said Buddle, who has nine goals in eight MLS games so far this season:

“I feel blessed with the opportunity to play with some of the best players in the country. I am incredibly thankful and ready to work hard to potentially earn a spot on the World Cup roster. It has always been my dream to represent my country and play in the World Cup. I would like to thank my teammates and coaches here with the Galaxy for helping to put me in a position to possibly fulfill this dream.”

The team will gather next week for training camp at Princeton University. The final 23-player FIFA World Cup roster is due to FIFA by June 1.

The Galaxy’s Landon Donovan feels the club can sustain its form even if both he and Buddle head to South Africa: “This will be my third World Cup and every one of them is special. … While it is never easy to leave my club team, especially for such a long period of time, I feel that we have a strong and deep team here with the Galaxy and that they will continue to play well in the absence of myself and Edson.”

The Americans leave for South Africa on May 30, and open the World Cup against England on June 12.

Also, New Jersey’s Giuseppe Rossi was selected for defending champion Italy’s 30-man preliminary World Cup roster.