Three Colorado Rapids players were called up for the US men’s national team December camp on Monday.
USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter called up Rapids midfielders Cole Bassett and Kellyn Acosta and defender Sam Vines for the last friendly of 2020, against El Salvador, on Wednesday, December 9, at 9:30 PM MT at Inter Miami CF Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
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Acosta, 25, has scored two goals in 23 senior international appearances for the US, and was on the 2017 Concacaf Gold Cup championship squad. The Plano, Texas, native excelled in his third season with Colorado, making 15 starts among 16 regular and postseason appearances and notching two goals and an assist. Acosta scored Colorado’s playoff-clinching goal, the game-winner on November 4 at Portland.
Bassett enjoyed an excellent year with Colorado and will be making his first appearance at a US senior camp with an opportunity to earn his first senior international cap. The 19-year-old Homegrown posted a team-leading five goals and five assists with Colorado in 2020, both career highs. Bassett has scored four goals in four appearances for the US U-20s, including a brace in a 2-1 win over Mexico on January 16, 2020.
Vines, a 21-year-old Homegrown defender from Colorado Springs, earned his second USMNT call. Vines was called up to Berhalter’s January camp and became the first Rapids Homegrown and Rapids Development Academy product to start a match for the USMNT, playing 77 minutes in the Americans’ 1-0 win over Costa Rica on February 1. Vines had a stand-out year for Colorado, posting a goal and three assists while playing every minute during the regular season – the only Rapids player to do so in 2020.
Bassett and Vines were both named to MLS 22 Under 22 for the second consecutive year.
With a busy international schedule in 2021, the Rapids’ trio could see plenty of action for the Stars and Stripes. In addition to Nations League, the Gold Cup and World Cup Qualifying, the US U-23s also hope to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, which were rescheduled for next year. U-23 MNT coach Jason Kreis will be on Berhalter’s staff in December.
