Four Sounders called into January camp with the U.S. men’s national team, and there are multiple surprises

Sounders forward Jordan Morris, defenders Brad Evans and Chad Marshall and goalkeeper Stefan Frei have all been called into January camp with the United States men’s national team by new head coach Bruce Arena, U.S. Soccer announced Thursday in a release.

Of the quartet, only Morris — the reigning MLS Rookie of the Year — had been a USMNT regular under former coach Jurgen Klinsmann.

Evans last made an appearance for the national team last January, the 31-year-old having mostly been edged out of the fold since the 2014 World Cup. Marshall hasn’t played for the USMNT since 2010, and this is Frei’s first-ever call-up. Like fellow debutant Kekuta Manneh of the Vancouver Whitecaps, Frei has not yet completed his requirements to represent the United States. While that process is ongoing, however, the Swiss native is welcome to practice with the team.

Sounders forward Clint Dempsey is something of a surprise omission from training camp. Though the veteran has been out since August with an irregular heartbeat, Arena was publicly optimistic about bringing Dempsey in for a full evaluation of his progress.

“We’re hopeful we can bring (Dempsey) into camp in January and just casually get him back into the swing of things – perhaps not even consider him playing – and then have him ready to go as Seattle starts their preseason, and then hopefully he’s ready for the U.S. team when qualifiers come around,” Arena told FOX back in early December.

Young Seattle midfielder Cristian Roldan will also be disappointed to be left off the roster. The 21-year-old was one of the breakout stars of the Sounders’ MLS Cup championship campaign in 2016. And though Roldan is eligible to play for both Guatemala and El Salvador, he has made clear his preference for waiting for a USMNT call — patience that may soon be running thin.

Players report for camp on Jan. 10 ahead of friendlies against Serbia on Jan. 29 and Jamaica on Feb. 3. The Sounders start their own preseason on Monday, Jan. 23.

Below is the USMNT roster in full:

GOALKEEPERS (5): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes), Stefan Frei (Seattle Sounders FC), Bill Hamid (D.C. United), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls)

DEFENDERS (10): DaMarcus Beasley (Unattached), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders FC), Greg Garza (Atlanta United FC), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Taylor Kemp (D.C. United), Chad Marshall (Seattle Sounders FC), Keegan Rosenberry (Philadelphia Union), Walker Zimmerman (FC Dallas), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

MIDFIELDERS (12): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City), Jermaine Jones (Unattached), Sacha Kljestan (New York Red Bulls), Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy), Kekuta Manneh (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Dax McCarty (New York Red Bulls), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Chris Pontius (Philadelphia Union), Wil Trapp (Columbus Crew SC)

FORWARDS (5): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution), Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)