February 23, 2009 GETTING THE CALL Flores named to U-20 team
Jorge Flores has been picked for the U.S. U-20 National Team that will play for the CONCACAF Championship. Linda Cuttone/Sports Vue Images
CARSON, Calif. ---Chivas USA’s Jorge Flores has been named to the United States’ roster for the upcoming CONCACAF Under-20 Championship by head coach Thomas Rongen. Flores was included on the 20-player squad for the tournament, which takes place in Trinidad and Tobago from March 6-15 and will qualify four teams for the 2009 FIFA Under-20 World Cup, which will run from Sept. 24-Oct. 16 in Egypt.
Flores and the rest of the squad will meet in Bradenton, Fla., Tuesday, Feb. 24, for five days of training before departing for Tobago on March 2. A total of eight teams will compete in the CONCACAF event, which is being held in a championship format for the first time since 1996. The U.S. was drawn into Group A for the tournament along with El Salvador, Jamaica and either Honduras or St. Vincent & the Grenadines. Group B includes Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago.
The top two teams from each group will qualify for the U-20 World Cup. The top two teams will also move on to the semifinals of the regional championship, which will be played on March 13 in Macoya, Trinidad. The third-place match and final will be played on March 15 at the same location.
The U.S. will open its qualifying campaign on Friday, March 6, taking on Jamaica at Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Tobago at 7:00 p.m. local time (3:00 p.m. PT). Rongen’s squad will face either Honduras or St. Vincent & the Grenadines on March 8 at 6:00 p.m. (2:00 p.m. PT) and round out group play against El Salvador on Tuesday, March 10, at 7:00 p.m. (3:00 p.m. PT). The U.S. will learn its second opponent when Honduras and St. Vincent & the Grenadines square off in a playoff game on March 2.
In 2008, his first full season as a professional, Flores played in 11 regular-season MLS matches (six starts) for Chivas USA, scoring three goals. The Anaheim, Calif. native was also with the U.S. U-20’s for international tournaments including the Copa Chivas (Mexico), the Campos Verdes International Tournament (Portugal), and the Milk Cup (Northern Ireland). In May, Flores joined the U.S. U-20’s for a pair of friendlies in England against English Premier League reserve teams, in which he recorded a goal and an assist.
U.S. Under-20 Men's National Team Roster
2009 CONCACAF U-20 Championship
Feb. 24-March 15
GOALKEEPERS (3): Sean Johnson (Central Florida; Lilburn, Ga.), Josh Lambo (FC Dallas; Middleton, Wis.), Brian Perk (UCLA; Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.)
DEFENDERS (7): Gale Agbossoumonde (Unattached; Syracuse, N.Y.), Kyle Davies (Southampton; Danville, Calif.), Jorge Flores (Chivas USA; Anaheim, Calif.), Aaron Maund (Notre Dame; Dorchester, Mass.), Amobi Okugo (San Juan Lightning; Sacramento, Calif.), Anthony Wallace (FC Dallas; St. Petersburg, Fla.), Sheanon Williams (Unattached; Boston)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Bryan Arguez (Hertha Berlin; Miami), Danny Cruz (Houston Dynamo; Glendale, Ariz.), Dilly Duka (Rutgers; Montville, N.J.), Jared Jeffrey (Club Brugge; Richardson, Texas), Brian Ownby (Virginia; Glen Allen, Va.); Brek Shea (FC Dallas; College Station, Texas)
FORWARDS (4): Sam Garza (Denver; Highland Village, Texas), Peri Marosevic (FC Dallas; Rockford, Ill.), Billy Schuler (North Carolina; Allentown, N.J.), Tony Taylor (Jacksonville; Jacksonville, Fla.)
