Columbus Crew SC’s roster presence on the U.S. Men’s National Team’s 23-man January Camp roster marks the most of any club in Major League Soccer, as the trio of Zack Steffen, Wil Trapp, and Gyasi Zardes is set to represent the Stars and Stripes in international friendlies against Panama in Glendale, Ariz. on Sunday, Jan. 27 (8 p.m. ET, ESPN, UniMás, UDN) and Costa Rica in San Jose, Calif. on Saturday, Feb. 2 (3:30 p.m. ET, Fox, UniMás, UDN).
Trapp and Zardes are two of four players on the MNT roster to hold double-digit career caps, while Steffen’s six – which all were recorded in 2018 – stands tied for the fifth among a roster whose average age stands at 24 years, 199 days, and 3 caps when excluding Zardes’ 40 and Michael Bradley’s 142.
Historically, the MNT is 12-1-6 all-time against Panama, with the U.S. taking the last match by a 4-0 score line on Oct. 6, 2017, in Orlando as part of 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifying.
Steffen returns after winning the 2018 U.S. Male Soccer Player of the Year Award, having made his MNT debut in 2018’s January Camp. Both Steffen and Zardes are two of four different MLS players on the camp's current roster to have won League awards in 2018, with Steffen being named Goalkeeper of the Year and Zardes earning Comeback Player of the Year honors.
Trapp, who had two caps prior to 2018, posted a breakout year on the international level as a then 25-year-old last year. A captain in eight of his nine appearances last year, the Gahanna, Ohio native finished tied with Bobby Wood for most MNT caps in 2018, while leading all 53 players in total minutes played (714), compared to his 2,919 minutes played across all competitions for the Crew last year.
Following the friendly vs. Costa Rica, players will return to their respective clubs, as the Crew prepares for the 2019 regular-season opener on Saturday, March 2 at 4:30 p.m. ET against the New York Red Bulls at MAPFRE Stadium.
