SAN JOSE, Calif. –
San Jose Earthquakes Academy midfielder Gilbert Fuentes has been named to the United States Under-15 Boys’ National Team by head coach Dave Van Den Bergh to compete in the 2017 CONCACAF U-15 Championship, running from August 13-19 at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.
Fuentes, 15, currently plays for the Earthquakes U-19 Academy squad. He has received multiple previous call-ups to the U.S. U-15 National Team, most recently for a tournament in Gradisca d’Isonzo, Italy in April. He was recently ranked as the nation’s fourth best player in class of 2020 by Top Drawer Soccer.
The competition marks the second U-15 confederation championship and the first time that the USA will participate. The USA will compete in Group B along with Canada, Costa Rica and Trinidad and Tobago. The U-15 BNT opens against Canada on Sunday, Aug. 13 at 6 a.m. PT, followed by Trinidad and Tobago on Monday, Aug. 14 at 8 a.m. PT and Costa Rica on Wednesday, Aug. 16 at 6 a.m. PT.
The USA would advance to the knockout stages by finishing in first or second place in group play. They would then face either the runner-up or winner of Group A, consisting of Mexico, Honduras, Jamaica and Panama, in the semifinals on Thursday, Aug. 17. Should the USA advance past the semifinal match, the red white and blue would play in the final on Saturday, Aug. 19.
“This is an important tournament for us, especially after the success we’ve had with the U-20’s and U-17’s this year,” Van Den Bergh said. “It’s going to be the first time ever that our U-15 National Team is going to take part in the CONCACAF U-15 Championship. We always want to win, but the inaugural one is a big one for us. It’s going to be big on our list of achievements that we want to accomplish for the duration of the tournament.
“This is a very good opportunity for these boys to showcase themselves against competition they’ll be facing for the rest of their lives, in qualifying. Hopefully, this is going to be a warm up for things to come and the future for these boys.”
Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2):
JT Harms (Shattuck-Saint Mary's; Faribault, Minn.), Damian Las (Chicago Fire; Norridge, Ill.).
DEFENDERS (6):
Axel Alejandre (FC United Soccer Club; Chicago, Ill.), George Bello (Atlanta United; Douglasville, Ga.), Mitch Eise (Sporting Kansas City; Springfield, Mo.), Mason Judge (Chargers Soccer Club; Tampa, Fla.), Kenny Nielsen (Pateadores; Irvine, Calif.), Joseph Scally (New York City FC; Lake Grove, N.Y.).
MIDFIELDERS (5):
Josh Atencio (Seattle Sounders; Seattle, Wash.),
Gilbert Fuentes (San Jose Earthquakes; Tracy, Calif.)
, Cesar Garcia (FC Dallas; Dallas, Texas), Adam Saldana (Real So Cal; Panorama City, Calif.), Peter Stroud (New York Red Bulls; Chester, N.J.).
FORWARDS (5):
Gianluca Busio (Sporting Kansas City; Greensboro, N.C.), Julian Gaines (Lonestar Soccer Club; Austin, Texas), Daniel Mangarov (Atlanta United; Duluth, Ga.), Alfonso Ocampo Chavez (Seattle Sounders; Fresno, Calif.), Giovanni Reyna (New York City FC; Bedford, N.Y.).
