It registered as a fairly significant surprise when Houston Dynamo veteran Corey Ashe was summoned late last week into Jurgen Klinsmann’s national team.
It was mostly for cover against the thinning ranks at left back ahead of two big friendlies against Belgium and Germany. Still, it was a big deal for Ashe, the converted left winger who moved back to defense originally when Dynamo manager Dominic Kinnear was himself desperate for cover at the position.
Since then, he’s been among the league’s steady-eddies at left back.
Ashe got the U.S. call on Friday, his first summons into a full U.S. national team camp. (Ashe was once a U.S. under-17, but his international career never achieved liftoff past that.) On Sunday in Kansas City, ticket in hand to join the United States on Monday in Cleveland, Ashe left the game with a groin strain, forcing his withdrawal from national team participation.
Maurice Edu will also miss the camp, according to U.S. Soccer, now diagnosed with a sports hernia. Edu was probably third or fourth on the more complete summer roster of holding midfielders, depending on how you want to count Michael Bradley, but he was one of just two (along with Jermaine Jones) available for Wednesday’s friendly against Belgium.
Brad Evans, a utility man but hardly a defensive midfield specialist, will help provide some cover there.
Also, Brek Shea has been dismissed for now, hoping to heal a calf issue and with an eye to potentially bringing him back at some point in June.