Brandon Vincent and Matt Polster were named to the roster for the U.S. Olympic qualifying team's two-leg playoff against Colombia next week.
Both players were in the starting lineup of the 0-0 draw against Columbus on Saturday and both have started all three Fire matches so far. In all, 11 MLS players were apart of the 23-man roster.
“I’m really excited," Vincent said. "It’s a huge honor and I’m really thankful for the opportunity. The focus was on the game today first and now I get to look towards that. I’m looking forward to representing the country and representing Chicago.”
[RELATED: Brandon Vincent makes national team debut in win against Canada]
Polster was a part of the initial qualifying squad while Vincent only became a part of the player pool during the January camp when he made his debut for the senior national team. Polster was also called into that camp, but did not play.
Vincent burst onto the scene as an American prospect recently following Stanford's national championship in the fall. His inclusion in the January camp and now this roster shows how far he has moved up the ranks in recent months after never representing the U.S. at the youth level.
“I’m just trying to keep my head down and work hard my whole career," Vincent said. "I get the opportunity now so I take it and just go forward with it.”
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The two players will fly out on Sunday to join the American squad coach by Andi Herzog.
The U.S. didn't qualify for the 2012 Olympics and was expected to do this time around, but were unable to get one of the two automatic spots from the CONCACAF region. Instead, they now face this daunting playoff with a strong Colombian team.
“It’s going to be exciting," Polster said. "It’s definitely something we need to qualify for. I know the pressure is on now, but I think the group that we put together that just came out with the coaching staff looks pretty solid.”
The first match will take place on March 25 in Colombia and the return leg will take place on March 29 at Toyota Stadium, the home of FC Dallas.