The 2017 pre-season is just around the corner. Most of the Reds will begin to report for physicals on Monday, January 23. However, a handful of Reds will be arriving later due to national team commitments. Here is a quick update on what the Reds away on international duty have been getting up to.
Canada – 7 Players
Seven Reds have spent the last week training with the Canadian National Team. Ashtone Morgan, Jay Chapman, Jonathan Osorio, Tosaint Ricketts, Jordan Hamilton, Mo Babouli and TFC II’s Raheem Edwards were all called in by interim Head Coach Michael Findlay. The seven Toronto FC players make up one-quarter of the invited players.
Team Canada has been training in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The group will continue to train there until an 18-player squad will travel to Bermuda on January 19. Canada will take on the 186th ranked Bermuda in a friendly on Sunday, January 22.
Unites States - 2 Players
Both Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore were named to Bruce Arena’s 32-player roster for his first camp as the new Head Coach of the United States National Team. The U.S. team has been holding camp in Carson, California at the StubHub Center and will train there until January 28.
The U.S. will play two friendlies during this international window. The U.S. will meet Serbia on Sunday, January 29 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California and Jamaica on Friday, February 3 at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Bradley is the camp leader in international caps and Altidore could become just the 17th player ever to earn 100 caps for the USMNT if he features in either of the friendlies.
Panama – 1 Player
Armando Cooper’s offseason was very short lived. He was called into the Panamanian national team on January 2. Him and his teammates trained in Panama before competing in the Copa Centroamerica hosted by Panama.
Panama played to a scoreless draw in its tournament opener against Belize. Cooper captained the team and played the full 90 minutes for the hosts. He recorded one shot off target and had a 91% pass completion rating.
Panama beat Nicaragua 2-1 in its second game of the tournament. Cooper came on as a late substitute. In their most recent match, Cooper started and played the full 90 minutes in the teams 1-0 loss to Honduras.
Panama will play El Salvador on January 20 and close out their tournament against Costa Rica on January 22. The top four teams in the tournament will qualify for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
