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Cahill, Yedlin headline picks for MLS All-Star Game roster

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By IVES GALARCEP

New York Red Bulls midfielder Tim Cahill and Seattle Sounders rookie DeAndre Yedlin were chosen by MLS Commissioner Don Garber to be part of the MLS All-Star Game roster, while All-Star coach Peter Vermes passed on selecting Landon Donovan and Jack McInerney.

Those will serve as the headlines surrounding the Gameday Roster for the MLS All-Star Game, which was released on Tuesday. Vermes selected all 11 players named to the Fan All-Star XI, and added seven players to the group, including Sporting KC’s Aurelien Collin and Vancouver Whitecaps forward Camilo Sanvezzo.

Garber used his two Commissioner’s picks to select Cahill and Yedlin, who becomes the first rookie to be named to the MLS All-Star match day roster since Michael Parkhurst in 2005.

Among the snubs were Philadelphia Union forward Jack McInerney, New England Revolution defender Jose Goncalves, and Los Angeles Galaxy and USMNT star Landon Donovan, who failed to make the MLS All-Star Game for the first time since coming to MLS in 2002, snapping a streak of 12 straight All-Star Game appearances.

Here is the full 2013 MLS All-Star Game gameday roster:

2013 MLS ALL-STAR GAME ROSTER

GOALKEEPERS: Raul Fernández (FC Dallas), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

DEFENDERS: Corey Ashe (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake), Aurélien Collin (Sporting Kansas City), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders FC)

MIDFIELDERS: Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Patrice Bernier (Montreal Impact), Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Will Johnson (Portland Timbers), Mike Magee (Chicago Fire), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

FORWARDS: Marco Di Vaio (Montreal Impact), Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy), Camilo Sanvezzo (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)

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What do you think of the squad? Who do you consider the biggest snub? Who are you happy to see make the team?

Share your thoughts below

Comments

      • promoted Championship clubs usually have multiple EPL quality players on their teams. How many players on this MLS All-Star game could play in the EPL?

      • GOALKEEPERS: Raul Fernández (FC Dallas)

        DEFENDERS: Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City)

        MIDFIELDERS: Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Tim Cahill Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

        FORWARDS: Marco Di Vaio (Montreal Impact), Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy), Camilo Sanvezzo (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)

      • Raul Fernández- no chance

        Matt Besler – possibly.

        Beckerman – no

        Tim Cahill- yes

        Graham Zusi – possibly. Not a starter though

        Marco Di Vaio- no way. Way past it

        Thierry Henry – yes but not a starter

        Robbie Keane – for a lower table club (west ham etc)

        Camilo Sanvezzo – no

        Wondo – no

      • besler definitely could. add gonzalez to too from the defense. yedlin could make a roster as a young talent, but would not be playing.

        you don’t think that zusi couldn’t start for a promoted team? there are some pretty weak and thin promoted teams. Some of those teams could definitely use Johnson, Bernier, Davis, Beckerman, or Magee.

        Wondo could play in EPL for the right team.

        Bottom line – this exercise is stupid (yet, kind of fun). EPL rosters are not built like this since there is so much that goes into player scouting that is working against these guys: age, nationality, contract status, etc. That doesn’t mean they couldn’t help a team get promoted from the Championship or that they are not talented enough to be on an EPL roster.

  1. Forward spots were hard to come by — I think it hurt Donovan in the voting that he was listed as a forward — so he had to go up against Wondo, Henry, etc. He probably would have had a better shot if listed as a midfielder where he mostly plays these days anyway.

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  2. omg people…stop your whining and realize that as MLS grows, more and more deserving players will be left out of this game. get over it. it’s a good thing in the end.

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    • Have to agree. He’s started to really heat up lately. He’s again the most important player on what is currently the best team in the league in RSL. I’d replace Cahill in a heart beat with Javi.

      But of course again Cahills selection by Garber is based on factors other than results on the field. Also Rimando is the starter with Fernandez coming in second half.

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      • Cahill absolutely deserves to be in this game…

        also, Fernandez is #2 on saves. Rimando isn’t even in the top 5. i think Fernandez has done enough to start.

      • If were going off of saves for GK’s then Jon Busch should represent MLS. Goalkeeping is more complicated than saves.
        http://www.mlssoccer.com/stats/season?sort=desc&order=Sv%25&season_year=2013&season_type=REG&team=ALL&group=GOALKEEPING&op=Search&form_id=mls_stats_individual_form

        Sort by save% or win% and Rimando is better than Raul every time. You can’t go off one stat only or else you get Jon Busch.

        Also I’ll take Javi Morales 5 goals (cahill 5 goals) and superior assists over cahill. Cahill is picked by Garber but Morales has and will have better stats than him by seasons end.

      • yeah, Busch absolutely is up there. but Rimando, this year, does not have nearly as good as a save %. his GAA is lower but that is a reflection of the defense. look at Guzan, high GAA but a lot of saves too. in his case, the saves stat is much more important because his defense is that bad. i’m not saying save % is the ONLY stat, but it’s certainly a major one given the GK’s job is to make saves…

        and i didn’t save Morales didn’t deserve it. but Cahill absolutely does too. and i’m a DCU fan.

        MLB is having this same issue with everyone complaining so many people got left off the All Star team. IT. IS. BOUND. TO. HAPPEN.

    • Javier Morales is definitely one of the biggest snubs on here. He has been the best player on RSL, who is the best team in the league in the first half. His stats are there as well with 5 goals and 7 assists despite missing the first month of the season. But, even more than the stats, he has been so much better than say Wondo or Davis or Bernier and RSL has been better as a team.

      Maybe people have not noticed because RSL hasn’t been on national TV enough, but Morales is absolutely back to his previous injury form where he was in the MVP conversation. He is having a great year and lead to RSL already having 36 points and being unbeaten in the last 11 with most of those being wins.

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  3. Can’t complain too much about the roster, really — Ives already identified most of the biggest snubs (Goncalves, McInerny, Donovan), and the only other one I’d add is Gonzalo Higuain. But given the intense competition for spots, I don’t really see that any of them have a clear-cut case to be on the roster ahead of those who were chosen… since I wholeheartedly subscribe to the theory that an All-Star Game is not an “all-hot-first-half-of-the-season game.”

    Jack Mac is young — he’ll have plenty more opportunities — and the competition at his position is far greater than is the case for Yedlin. In normal circumstances including Donovan would be a no-brainer, but he just hasn’t done enough to merit consideration this season since his return. (You can argue about Wondo, but at least he’s been present and accounted for all year.)

    Reply
    • I think Federico is the Higuain you are looking for, buddy.

      (Unless Arsenal did some quick transferring that I did not know about)

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      • Oops… maybe that was a Freudian slip by a Crew fan who loves Federico but sure would exchange him in a heartbeat for Gonzalo….

  4. Really interesting choice by Garber to pick Yedlin, trying to promote the homegrown system possibly? I am a huge Yedlin fan but think his inclusion here is a bit of a stretch. Although it is hard to really fault the addition of him seeing as he does bring a lot of excitement.

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  5. Jack Mack is the biggest snub and just stupid by MLS.

    Real fans, the ones who follow MLS should be your target. It is great you have Henry and Keane, but it is the casual fan that they attract. Seattle, Portland and Vancouver with their 30-40 year history of nobodys has already shown us that…..
    ……So they snub Jack Mack and put no Philadelphia guys on the roster. Wow.

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    • I’d put Thierry Henry on any team before Jack McInerney. He still brings so much more to the table. Henry creates as much as he scores. So, he may draw more casual fans, but even hardcore homeboy fans have to admit there is a world of difference between Henry and Jack Mac.

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    • no chance Jack Mac should be there over Henry and it’s ridiculously silly to suggest that. if you want to argue he should be there over Wondo, absolutely. but that’s about the only argument. Keane, Henry, and De Vaio should be there no doubt.

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    • also, how can you argue Jack Mac will be more popular among fans when the fans picked HENRY?!?!?! that makes literally no sense.

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    • JackMc has 10 goals, but Keane has 7 goals and 8 assists. Henry doesn’t have the numbers, but they’re not leaving Thierry Henry off the All Star roster. It’s real competitive at that forward spot.

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    • Jack might just have returned from Gold Cup duty which ends on July 28th (assuming US makes the final) . 3 days before all star game.

      possibly Philly dont want him to play after not playing with them for more than a month. or something like that

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      • All Star Games are generally about the stars, and not necessarily who is having the best season. I’m guessing Donovan would be on there if he hadn’t missed the beginning of the year, even with his subpar season. Wondo made the team based on last year.

        I’m not saying it’s right, it’s just how it usually works.

      • In most cases, it’s not the “1st half of the season All-Star Game” — it’s been a year since the players hit the field, so the 2nd half of 2012 should count.

      • The last year comment is comical. I have seen that mentioned before, and it is ridiculous that the all star team in based on last year’s performance. That’s how the NBA, NHL, and MLB all work too, right? (Not saying you you agree, just that the last year performance is why he was chosen)

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