After suffering an injury with his club last week, Timmy Chandler will not take part in the upcoming Copa America.
U.S. Soccer announced on Friday that the federation has submitted a request to have Chandler removed from the U.S. Men’s National Team’s Copa America roster in favor of Edgar Castillo. The decision to remove Chandler from the roster comes after the fullback was diagnosed with a right quadriceps strain following Eintracht Frankfurt’s successful relegation playoff battle with FC Nurnberg.
According to regulations, an injured player can be replaced up to 24 hours before the team’s first match with the replacement coming from a 40-man preliminary roster.
Castillo joins the USMNT after starting the last two World Cup qualifiers against Guatemala. The Monterrey defender has 18 caps and is expected to report to camp following the Liga MX finals second leg against Omar Gonzalez’s Pachuca on Sunday.
What do you think of the news? Expect Castillo to play a part in the Copa America?
Share your thoughts below.
This will allow our best player (Fabian Johnson) to play in his best position of LM!
Guys relax. We’ve come along way since the Jonathan Bornstein days havent we Gary Paige.
Our LB situation continues to be a nightmare situation if Castillo is to be relied upon. I guess this means Fabian will be locked in at LB the whole tourney!
I actually think this is a blow to USA. Chandler the one RB that can switch to LB. I’m not a Castillo fan. I really hope he proves me wrong. GO USA!!!
This is a sign that JK is committed to a 4-3-3 or other formation that features fullbacks attacking up the flanks and depends on the CBs and centermids to defend counterattacks.
Calm down folks. Castillo has always excelled in one specific role for the usmnt: late game sub in the backline when down a goal. See: Panama aka San Zusi goal:
A real setback for my “be positive about the national team despite Jurgen” campaign. How can Castillo be allowed even to carry the bags on the national team? Useless, and well documented as useless. Surely there is someone in MLS that can be less of a handicap.
Why bring in someone who’s already shown that he’s not an international caliber player and who will be turning 30 in a couple of months? Why not try someone much younger?
Who would you bring in? Only other choice seems to be E.Lichaj
Jorge Villafaña
Cylo: Don’t know if you are being sarcastic, but you can only bring in guys on the 40 man roster which Villafana wasn’t on.
Brek Shea deserves another chance.
One of those players that tears it up for his club but can’t quite bring it for the NT. We know he has the skills, hopefully somethng clicks for him in this tournament
Cause maybe down in Mexico you can get away with being a “go forward” fullback who is a weak link on actual defense, but in international play the right teams will abuse all day a back lacking positional sense and the willingness to get stuck in. Just soft and out of position all the time.
“go forward” fullback who is a weak link on actual defense”
Not arguing but Isn’t that what we love about Yedlin?
Until recently- that has been the prevailing criticism of Yedlin- while the more recent tone when speaking of him is all about his improvement on defense, man on man marking, positional awareness. Check a Sunderland board and if there is a gripe, it is likely going to be about his limitations going forward- mainly his crosses.
He didn’t play last night anyone know why? He had been nursing his toe injury and I think a broken nose.
i think he was a little banged up but he did play in Semi-Final’s. There is also the question of how the play Ayovi (ECU) sometimes at leftback others in the midfield. Edgar is certainly their first choice leftback and I would bet on him playing the second leg on Sunday vs. Omar Gonzalez & los Tuzos
Good deal! I’ll take it.
I hope he brings his finest attacking WB form with him. He and FJ In front of him late game could be the difference between a W or an L
Good! Castillo is way better than Chandler IMHO.
Castillo cannot defend. It’s like running Spector out there on defense. If the intent was wide mid sub, maybe (although the talent there is going up and up). But him for Chandler is D for D and he can’t play D to save his life.
And Chandler can? I’ve never seen a more effortless, worthless defender in Chandler in all my years of watching the U.S. The guy is out of position all the time. When he gets beat, he doesn’t hustle to recover. He is always making mental mistakes. While Castillo way not be a world beater, I’ve never seen any comments about his lack of effort.
I prefer Chandler to Castillo, but not a big fan of either. Castillo has continuously played poor for us, while Chandler has had both good and bad games, so there is at least some hope. Either way, I would have liked to see Lichaj get the nod, but it figures JK picks a guy that has never done well for the usmnt, regardless of his form for club. Just because he is left footed does not mean he is a great LB. Here’s hoping that he plays well if called upon.
Also, I thought Chandler was good to go based on reports. A little unsettling that is not the case.
Two Cents, I disagree that Castillo has always been bad for the USMNT. Actually that’s just plain wrong. He’s had good games and bad games.
Imperative Voice, I also disagree that Castillo cannot defend at all. He’s definitely not a lock-down defender but he’s average to serviceable, and considering our dry pool at left-back he is the best option right now.
Another thing to consider is that the style of soccer played in the Mexican league is much closer to the style the South American teams play than that of MLS or Europe. Will that help Castillo at all? Who knows, but we aren’t likely to see much of Castillo anyway unless Fabian Johnson gets injured or moved up to midfield.
I kinda like the message that’s being sent here.
It’s easy to get too global. “JK Loves Passport Americans”. “JK Hates Mexicans.” “JK LOVES Mexicans.” “JK hates MLS”. Fill in the blanks.
What we’re seeing – maybe 4-5 years in – is that JK actually has a spreadsheet. And all he’s doing, really, is working off it. You may not agree with is, you may disagree with it totally…but he really does have one.
I’ve always kind of liked Castillo. At least, I love him going forward. I have hated – on occasion – his defense, and on occasion his defense has been, well, indefensible.
But hey, there hey is. Instead of pulling some random schmoe out of his posterior, there’s Castillo…right behind Chandler. Again.
JK is doing his thing. Agree, disagree, whatever. But it’s becoming obvious he has some sort of criteria by which he is grading players…and it’s actually fairly predictable.
If you’re trying to “change a culture”, ain’t that what you do?
You have to distinguish between what Jurgen does and says on the one hand and what people say about him on the other. I admit that people have criticized him for all sorts of sins. He may not have committed some of them.
At the same time, defending Jurgen on the basis that “he has criteria” is pretty lame. Everyone, save a few loonies, has criteria. And I would say that if the criteria prompt you to pick Castillo, they are the wrong criteria.
Ideally neither of these scrubs would see the field anyway.
Sort of feel the same way….but at least there’s a LB on the roster now lol.