There are many benefits to having a winning season. Salary raises, free drinks at the bar from supporters, a cool new stadium. But if you are a footballer perhaps the greatest perk is that you put yourself in contention for a call up from your national team coach. This week, D.C. United’s Steve Birnbaum and Perry Kitchen were rewarded for their hard work in 2014 with a call-up to the U.S. Men’s National Team.
Birnbaum and Kitchen will join US Men’s National Team coach Jurgen Klinsmann for training camp in Carson, California starting on Monday. The camp will last until February the 8th and will include a trip to Santiago, Chile to to take on the Chilean national team on January the 25th. After the Chile match, players will return to Carson to prepare for a friendly with Panama on February the 8th.
This will be both players first appearance with the U.S. Men’s National Team. Kitchen has represented the United States at the U-17, U-20, and U-23 level while Birnbaum has played at the U-18 and U-20 level.
Goalkeeper Bill Hamid was also expected to be called into camp. However, he recently sustained a shoulder injury which will keep him limited for the next few weeks.
Although January camps are typically a time where US Soccer coaches look at the depth of the national team as a whole, both players have certain skills that could become an asset for Klinsmann. With Klinsmann shifting Jermaine Jones into the center-back position and Kyle Beckerman just about to turn 32, the United States needs to start looking at younger defensive-midfielders.
At just 22 years old, Kitchen already has over 102 appearances for D.C. United. Moreover, he is an expert at starting the transition from defense to attack. He also showed a willingness to lead the attack in 2014, a skill that he was lacking in previous seasons. His 5 goals in 2014 was a career-best and his 4 assists matched his output from 2013.
As for Birnbaum, he too will have plenty of opportunities to prove his value. As evidenced by their last four results (two draws against Honduras and Ecuador and two losses against Colombia and the Republic Ireland,) the United States is very thin at the center-back position. Although Matt Besler of Sporting Kansas City is penciled as one of the starters, the other position is wide open at this point. Jones may be Klinsmann’s choice for the other starter but his performances thus far have left a lot to be desired.
What might give Birnbaum an edge over the competition is that Besler plays a very similar style to that of Birnbaum’s D.C. United teammate: Bobby Boswell. Like Boswell, Besler likes to be the link between defense and midfield and is a bit more attack-minded. If Klinsmann still wants to have Besler start, then he will need someone who can be able to act as a more prototypical sweeper, something that Birnbaum is very comfortable doing.
Birnbaum was D.C. United’s first round draft pick in the MLS SuperDraft in 2014. He made 21 appearances with the club all of which were starts. He was a very important key to United allowing just 37 goals in 2014, tied with the Los Angeles Galaxy for the lowest in the league.
One thing to keep in mind is that D.C. United’s season will begin a bit earlier than other teams due to their participation in the CONCACAF Champions League. Due to USMNT training camp, Birnbaum and Kitchen will not be available for United until February the 8th.
Players are expected to report for United on January the 22nd with training camp beginning on the 23rd. The club currently has three pre-season matches scheduled for January the 30th, February the 3rd and February the 6th. The team will be participating in the ATX Pro Challenge in Austin, Texas (hosted by USL Pro’s Austin Aztex,) from February the 13th to the 20th. Their first CONCACAF Champions League match against Alajuelense will be on Thursday February the 26th in Alajuela, Costa Rica.
