CARSON, Calif. (Friday, Aug. 1, 2014) – LA Galaxy Homegrown Player Oscar Sorto has been named to the U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team 18-player roster for a five-day camp from Aug. 3-7 in Nassau, Bahamas. The U-23s will also face the Bahamas Senior National Team Wednesday, Aug. 6 at the Thompson A. Robinson National Stadium.
Signed by the LA Galaxy in January 2013, Sorto became the first defender signed from the Galaxy Academy after a successful career that included helping the LA Under-18’s win the 2011-12 SoCal Division title. He made his MLS debut this year after being subbed in at the 75th minute April 6 in the Galaxy’s 3-0 win against Chivas USA. In his rookie season, Sorto made a pair of appearances for the Galaxy first team, both starts which came during the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League. The Galaxy Academy product also has played an integral role in Galaxy II’s inaugural season in USL PRO, making 16 appearances and helping lead the team to a 11-6-4 record.
During his rookie year, Sorto was also a member of Tab Ramos’ United States U-20 side at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey. The defender made a pair of appearances during the campaign.
This camp is part of the USA’s continuing effort to focus early on the qualification process for the 2016 Summer Olympics taking place in Rio de Janeiro. In April, the USA started this phase in earnest with an Under-21 MNT camp at U.S. Soccer’s National Training Center.
“The chance to get this group of players together and get ahead of the curve in preparation for Olympic Qualifying in two years’ time is huge,” said U.S. Soccer Technical Director Jurgen Klinsmann. “We began with the U-21 camp in April, and now it’s critical that we have as many camps and games as possible so we can build a deep pool of talent that can qualify for Brazil. The Olympics are an important opportunity for young players, and we have to capitalize on it. We also want to give a big thanks the Bahamas Football Association for hosting us.”
U.S. Men’s National Team staff assistant coaches Tab Ramos and Andi Herzog and goalkeeper coach Chris Woods, as well as U.S. Under-18 Men’s National Team head coach Javier Perez, are overseeing the camp.
The roster features eight players that Ramos coached at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey: goalkeepers Cody Cropper and Zack Steffen, defenders Juan Pablo Ocegueda and Oscar Sorto, midfielders Luis Gil and Benji Joya and forwards Daniel Cuevas and Victor Pineda.
In the U-21 MNT camp earlier this year, Joya scored two goals, including a game-winner in second-half stoppage time, to lead the USA to a 2-1 victory against Tijuana on April 23. Nine players on the current U-23 roster were part of that U-21 camp: Cuevas, Christian Dean, Gil, Marlon Hairston, Joya, Jordan Morris, Ocegueda, Pineda, Sorto,
U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team
Roster By Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Cody Cropper (Southampton; Maple Grove, Minn.), Zack Steffen (Maryland; Downington, Pa.)
DEFENDERS (7): AJ Cochran (Houston Dynamo; St. Louis, Mo.), Christian Dean (Vancouver Whitecaps FC; East Palo Alto, Calif.), Ramon Martin del Campo (San Jose Earthquakes; Chula Vista, Calif.), Bryan Gallego (Arizona United; Kinnelon, N.J.), Juan Pablo Ocegueda (Alebrijes de Oaxaca; Riverside, Calif.), William Packwood (Birmingham City; Concord, Mass.), Oscar Sorto (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (4): Dennis Flores (León; Pasadena, Calif.), Luis Gil (Real Salt Lake; Garden Grove, Calif.), Marlon Hairston (Colorado Rapids; Jackson, Miss.), Benji Joya (Chicago Fire; San Jose, Calif.)
FORWARDS (5): Daniel Cuevas (CF Lobos BUAP; Sacramento, Calif.), Alfred Koroma Shams (Internacional; Southlake, Texas), Jordan Morris (Stanford; Mercer Island, Wash.), Victor Pineda (Indy Eleven; Bolingbrook, Ill.), Omar Salgado (Vancouver Whitecaps FC; El Paso, Texas)
