Dempsey returns to USMNT for World Cup qualifiers in March
As Bruce Arena leads the United States men's national team into its first 2018 World Cup qualifiers since US Soccer parted ways with Jurgen Klinsmann, the American manager will be boosted by the return of Clint Dempsey.
On Wednesday, Arena called up 24 players for the USMNT's critical World Cup qualifiers against Honduras and Panama in March. The roster is highlighted by Dempsey, who was cleared to play in February after being diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat. The American attacker was absent from the Stars and Stripes' defeats to Mexico and Costa Rica in November, which left the national team in the basement of The Hex and marked Klinsmann's last two games in charge.
Dempsey's last international appearance was nearly nine months ago. Since then, he holds only 180 minutes of football to his name appearing in the Seattle Sounders' first two matches of the MLS season.
Among Arena's call-ups are 13 players who were part of the USMNT's squad that fell to Mexico and Costa Rica, while four - Jorge Villafana, Walker Zimmerman, Sebastian Lletget, Dax McCarty - took part at the team's January camp.
"We put together a roster that we think has balance and one that gives us an option in playing a number of different ways," Arena said. "It's a roster where the primary rationale is to help us be successful in these two games, but we're also looking down the road and bringing in some young players that we think have an opportunity to be an important part of the national team program as well. Our approach to these games is simple. We want to win."
The USMNT will host Honduras at Avaya Stadium in San Jose on March 24 before invading Panama at Estadio Rommel Fernandez on March 28.
Here's the USMNT's squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan, Tim Howard, Nick Rimando
Defenders: DaMarcus Beasley, John Brooks, Geoff Cameron, Omar Gonzalez, Michael Orozco, Tim Ream, Jorge Villafana, Walker Zimmerman
Midfielders: Kellyn Acosta, Alejandro Bedoya, Michael Bradley, Jermaine Jones, Fabian Johnson, Sebastian Lletget, Dax McCarty, Darlington Nagbe, Christian Pulisic
Forwards: Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood