Even if Clint Dempsey agrees with his surprising exclusion from Jurgen Klinsmann’s latest U.S. National Team roster, that doesn’t mean everyone understands the decision.
Longtime LA Galaxy star and Dempsey’s former USMNT teammate Landon Donovan said this week that he thinks the Sounders FC Designated Player should have been called into camp ahead of the squad's first two World Cup Qualifiers on the road to Russia 2018.
“Only Jurgen really knows that or maybe Clint, but if I’m the manager, I want Clint to be part of what we’re doing – period, end of story,” Donovan told Goal.com. “Maybe if it’s a friendly game that’s different and you can start to look at other players, but in a World Cup qualifier, there’s no room for error. This round of qualifying on paper isn’t as difficult as the final round of qualifying, but there are only six games. If you throw away a game or two games you might not even advance to the next round.”
The U.S. will host St. Vincent and the Grenadines in St. Louis on Friday (4 p.m. PT; ESPN2) before playing at Trinidad and Tobago on Nov. 17 (3:30 p.m. PT; beIN Sports).
Klinsmann said he left Demspey off the current roster in order to give an opportunity to young players like Bobby Wood, Sounders FC Academy product Jordan Morris and Gyasi Zardes, Donovan’s former teammate with the Galaxy.
“I didn’t agree with it. I think most of the US soccer community didn’t agree with it,” Donovan said. “But it is what it is. Clint accepted it and did a good job at least publicly of dealing with it, but I would still want him on my team. If I’m a guy in that camp, I’m saying, ‘I want Clint on this team.’”
Klinsmann said that he contacted Dempsey about the decision and that “it’s all fine,” and Dempsey added that Klinsmann “hit me up, left a voicemail and a text” to let him know about the roster decision. Dempsey also said last week that he felt he had a productive year with the USMNT and that he has more to offer in 2016, a year that will feature more World Cup Qualifiers and the Copa América Centenario on U.S. soil.
“I felt good with my return this year with the national team,” Dempsey told KESN 103.3 FM in Dallas. “I think I played in 10 games, scored nine goals. I’ve enjoyed my time playing for the country. I still think that there’s some more games to be played.”
