Johann Smith called to US U-20's camp

[JayJay4Pres]

http://dcunited.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20061005&content_id=74770&vkey=pr_dcu&fext=.jsp&team=t103

The link is about Adu, but the full squad is listed on the bottom.

[Vicar]

Thats good as Johann is one of the clubs promising youngster along with Vaz Te and Fojut that will be playing for their country during the international break. Johann was in southern Spain this week with the first team training in great weather, hope he is not too jet lagged for the match. The trip also served to get Big Sam away from "bungate" hysteria.

[JayJay4Pres]

Johann grabs a goal and assist in victory over Haiti U23's

http://ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_281430.html

[JayDelight729]

New Article on Johann. Lot of interesting tidbits about his experience coming to Bolton.

http://www.yanks-abroad.com/content.php?mode=yax&id=2315

[JayJay4Pres]

Smith is headed to another camp...this one a 3 day camp ending with a match against Guatamala. Looks like he should see time in the final round of CONCACAF qualifying for the the U20 World Cup.

"Nine Major League Soccer players representing six different teams have been selected by U.S. U-20 national team head coach Thomas Rongen to participate in the side's upcoming three-day camp in Sunrise, Fla., which will conclude Nov. 15 with a match against Guatemala.

Two players each from the Los Angeles Galaxy, Columbus Crew and New York Red Bulls are on the 19-man roster, while D.C. United, the New England Revolution and FC Dallas boast one representative apiece. The U-20s are currently preparing for the 2007 CONCACAF Final Round Qualifying Tournament, in which they will aim to book passage to their sixth consecutive FIFA U-20 World Cup (formerly the FIFA World Youth Championship).

"Facing a quality opponent that is also involved in the U-20 qualifying tournament will provide our players with a competitive game that will help us prepare for our three qualifying games in January," said Rongen. "Along with playing a high-level match, this short camp will provide us with another opportunity to bring in some of the professional players in our pool that are overseas and a number of the domestic professionals as the MLS Cup will end the first day of the camp."

At only 17, D.C. United's Freddy Adu is the most experienced player on the roster, having competed in the last two FIFA World Championships. During the 2006 MLS season, the third for the Ghana-born midfielder/forward, Adu recorded two goals and a career-high eight assists in 29 regular season appearances. He also started each of the Black-and-Red's three MLS Cup Playoff contests.

Another of the league's most promising youngsters, New York's Josmer Altidore, joins Adu on the team. Altidore came on strong during the Red Bulls' late-season run, scoring three goals in the team's final seven regular-season games and notching New York's only goal against United in the Eastern Conference Semifinal Series. Also making the journey from New York is fellow striker David Arvizu, who did not see any time with the Red Bulls' first team during his rookie season.

A pair of Los Angeles Galaxy defenders has been summoned for duty, as Quavas Kirk and Nathan Sturgis both received call-ups. The rookies made 22 and 15 appearances, respectively, during their rookie campaigns. Second-year pro Tim Ward has also been called in for defensive duty. He made 11 appearances for Columbus this year after spending his rookie season a year ago in New York. Midfielder Danny Szetela completes the Crew contingent. The New Jersey native was limited to just four appearances during his third professional season due to injury.

Miguel Gonzalez (New England Revolution) and Dax McCarty (FC Dallas) round out the MLS representation on the roster. Gonzalez didn't see any first team action for the Revs this season, while McCarty was limited to just two appearances. McCarty is the leading scorer for the U-20s this year with three goals and three assists.

Group A of the 2007 CONCACAF Under-20 Final Round Qualifying Tournament will take place from Jan. 17-21 in Panama City, Panama, while Group B will occur a month later from Feb. 21-25 in Culiacan, Sinaloa, which is on the west coast of Mexico. The U.S. will join hosts Panama and Mexico in one of the final two qualifying groups, along with Costa Rica, Guatemala, Haiti, St. Kitts & Nevis and the winner of a home-and-away series between Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago.

The draw to determine which teams will be in Group A and Group B will be held on Nov. 24 during the CONCACAF Executive Committee Meeting in Los Angeles. The top two squads from each group will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, which will take place from June 30-July 22 across six cities -- Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton, Burnaby and Victoria.

The U.S. U-20s are 4-4-2 overall this year, with wins against Argentina, Canada, Haiti and Wales. Tickets for next Wednesday's friendly against Guatemala are priced at $10 and are available now online at www.tixops.com or by calling 1-877-877-7677.

Complete U.S. roster:

GOALKEEPERS (2): Zac MacMath (St. Petersburg, Fla.), Nicholas Skverer (NEC Nijmegen)
DEFENDERS (7): Kris Banghart (N.C. Wesleyan College), Kyle Davies (Pleasanton, Calif.), Quavas Kirk (L.A. Galaxy), Nathan Sturgis (L.A. Galaxy), Neven Subotic (Mainz 05), Anthony Wallace (USF), Tim Ward (Columbus Crew)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Freddy Adu (D.C. United), Bryan Arguez (Miami, Fla.), Miguel Gonzalez (New England Revolution), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas), Nico Mosquera (University of Central Florida), Danny Szetela (Columbus Crew)
FORWARDS (4): Josmer Altidore (N.Y. Red Bulls), David Arvizu (N.Y. Red Bulls), Ellis McLoughlin (Seattle, Wash.), Johann Smith (Bolton FC)

Jonathan Nierman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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