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Chandler withdraws from USMNT camp due to injury

Photo by Trevor Ruszkowski/USA Today Sports

Timmy Chandler recently earned his first U.S. Men’s National Team callup under Bruce Arena but, just days after playing in a German Cup final, the fullback has been forced to withdraw.

U.S. Soccer announced on Wednesday that Chandler has withdrawn from camp due to a hamstring injury. The defender’s issue comes several days after Chandler played 72 minutes in Eintracht Frankfurt’s 2-1 loss to Borussia Dortmund in Saturday’s DFB-Pokal finale.

Chandler was set to join USMNT camp for the first time since Arena’s hiring, joining Brad Guzan, Fabian Johnson, Ethan Horvath, Bobby Wood and DeAndre Yedlin as familiar faces set to make their debut under Arena. However, with Chandler now forced to pull out, the roster stands at 26 as the U.S. trains in Denver for a friendly and a pair of World Cup qualifiers.

With Chandler’s absence, Yedlin, DaMarcus Beasley, Jorge Villafana and Graham Zusi remain the primary fullbacks on the roster with Matt Besler and Tim Ream as potential backup options.

The U.S. returns to action on June 3 for a friendly against Venezuela before taking on Trinidad & Tobago and Mexico on June 8 and 11, respectively.

Here’s a closer look at the full U.S. roster:

GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan (Atlanta United FC), Ethan Horvath (Club Brugge), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

DEFENDERS: DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), John Brooks (Hertha Berlin), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Tim Ream (Fulham), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna), DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle United), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

MIDFIELDERS: Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Fabian Johnson (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund)

FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Bobby Wood (Hamburg SV)

Comments

  1. If Arena’s idea of a backup is to play Zusi then we are screwed. The fact that he even thinks Zusi belongs, not to mention Beasley, should causing a general panic on this board

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    • The Zusi & Beasley inclusions are 2 of the biggest head Scratcher picks. I don’t buy that Ream & Besler could be deployed at LB if needed. If this is the thinking than I see no reason why Garza wasn’t chosen over Beasley.
      Same issue on the right side of defense. Yes Cameron can play RB if something were to happen to Yedlin….but why bring in Zusi? Lichaj offers depth at either RB or LB so if you need to bring a 3rd stringer in he should have gotten the call to cover both positions.

      Arena is making some of the same mistakes he made in his 2nd cycle as head coach back in 2006. He’s holding onto players past their expiration date (Beasley) or trying to shoe-horn in players to positions their not really suited for.

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    • Hyndman is out injured though. There was a story a while back that said he’s hoping to be healthy in time for preseason at Bournemouth which is still a ways away.

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  2. Probably why Zusi was called in, arena wasn’t sure if Chandler was going to be healthy. No need for a three RBs anyway, specially if Cameron and Johnson could play there if someone else got hurt.

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  3. SBI posters: Wood shouldn’t be playing and needs to withdraw cause he took some painkillers and must be injured (all while playing the whole game in his last outing)!

    Then,

    Chandler doesn’t care about the US cause he’s withdrawing from an injury (even though he only made it 72 min in his last game)!

    How about we quit with all the speculation and leave the injury situation for the coaches to work out?

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  4. I would have expected for Lichaj to replace him but nothing yet on if there will be any replacements. It makes you wonder why Bruce would call in Lichaj for the March WCQ’s but not now, even after he was billed Forset’ player of the year?!

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    • He won the fan vote so not sure how much stock to put into that award. Also not sure Bruce called him in in March or just said that he wasn’t available. Perhaps Bruce’s intention in March was for him to back up Zusi, so with Yedlin back there is no need for Lichaj.

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      • God I hope not….the only person Zusi is ahead of in the RB pecking order is me, barely because I spent most of my life as a CB than CDM. 😉

      • On the us soccer website Bruce was interviewed about roster selections for the March qualifiers and he said Licha was on the initial roster but he too got injured right before they were to release it so he had to call in Zuni instead. Remember, Yedlin was injured and Chandler was already suspended for one match so BA decided not to call him in period, so we were left with Lichaj and Cameron as the right backs, that is until Lichajs injury.

      • Thanks I couldn’t find it anywhere. I think it might have been in his Facebook segment, but I wasn’t going to sit through that whole thing to find it. I think Orozco was actually the replacement for Lichaj and Zusi wasn’t added until later for FJ so I guess my whole theory is shot to pieces. Of course the US Soccer story listed Zusi as “speedy” so not sure we can count on their accuracy either.

  5. I have no idea how serious this and the many other reasons for not showing are, but is there anyone here, reading this that would miss as many has he would?

    I can’t imagine.

    So we are back to how do we decide on how much red, white and blue are running in the blood of a guy who lived in Germany his whole life, but is eligible to play for US.
    I have no problem with guys like that playing for the US, but I want them in like I would be in.

    Chandler doesn’t seem like that to me. I would have a pretty short leash quite frankly. Fair? Maybe not, but here we are. Is this fair to us?

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    • “I have no idea how serious this”.. you have no idea but sounds like you already decided that Chandler is lying and didn’t want to come. Many others here have also. Chandler was legitimately injured as evident from just watching his last game. Many players in the US pool frequently miss games due to injury. Lets not make it a big deal for some while selectively ignoring the others. Chandler has actually been a part of almost every camp he has been called into recently.

      And to answer your question, if I lived and played in Germany and so many of the games were in the US (especially the Western US and North America), then yes I’d probably miss a few camps here and there.

      Play Saturday. Fly 11 hours or whatever it is. Play Wednesday (maybe), fly back 11 hours back home. Play Saturday again. Damn right I’m missing a few of those trips on occasion. That’s just me though.

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      • The disdain Chandler gets is unreal. He is not nearly the monster he is made out and has played quite well for the US, IMO. The worst TC has ever player for the US at RB is leaps and bounds better than Zusi will ever be at that position. (not a knock on Zusi, either)

      • I don’t think anyone is really insinuating he is lying, maybe they are, but you have to admit it’s always something going on with TC. And if I’m being honest the refused call ups, underwhelming performances, and his club manager dismissing of the US team with a subsequent threat that if TC kept accepting call you ups he’d lose his spot, is all a little too much. Yesterday I said maybe it’s time to move on from him but I’m willing to recant that after further digesting it all, but when is enough enough??

  6. Door opens for Lichaj? I would still be stunned if a right back for the near bottom team in the championship is any better than a Bundesliga semi standout, but maybe Bruce will kick the tires.

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  7. Can we just stop calling this guy in? I don’t think he cares and even if he does he’s been terrible in the shirt.

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    • He’s got the skills, but man is it ever frustrating trying to get him to play. First it was fear of flying which kept him overseas, then a back injury, then a hamstring, then….

      I don’t know if Bruce would have been able to get the most of him, but I think I’m in the same camp as you – we don’t need to call him in anymore.

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    • If you saw the German Cup final he was clearly struggling with the hamstring. He pulled up a couple of times and eventually had to come off. T

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