Former Roma midfielder Michael Bradley has been named as the USA captain for the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup.
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According to Fox Sports, USA boss Jurgen Klinsmann made the decision after Clint Dempsey was sent off in a US Open Cup game last week. It is reported that Klinsmann felt the captaincy would be too much for the ex Fulham and Spurs midfielder to deal with on top of maintaining his performances and the disciplinary procedures.
“I had a very, very good conversation with Clint about what happened during the Open Cup, but also about how we want to approach things,” Klinsmann said. “For the time being we thought it’s the best thing to give the captaincy to Michael Bradley and let Clint focus on what he’s all about. Clint is about scoring goals. We need Clint Dempsey badly with the National Team. We need him in a good spirit.”
27 year old Bradley originally played for the NY/NJ MetroStars, before moving to Europe and representing Roma, Aston Villa, and Borussia Mönchengladbach, among others.
He returned to the MLS with Toronto in 2014 in a move that was criticised by Klinsmann at the time.
He has made 98 appearances for the national side, scoring 13 goals in the process.