With his back to the wall heading into the final two World Cup qualifiers, U.S. national team coach Bruce Arena took some gambles with the 26-man team he called up Sunday.
And one of those rolls of the dice has already come up snake eyes with the Galaxy’s Gyasi Zardes unlikely to make it Orlando, Fla., for the start of training Monday after straining his groin in the first half of Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Real Salt Lake.
Zardes’ inclusion on the preliminary U.S. roster was surprising since he had been passed over for the U.