CHICAGO (April 3, 2008) -- The U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team will be traveling to the Chicago area for Development Academy matches against the Chicago Magic on Saturday, April 5 and the Chicago Fire Academy on Sunday, April 6. Both games are open to the public and admission is free.

U.S. Under-17 head coach Wilmer Cabrera will split his 34 available players into two teams for the weekend’s matches, with one team taking on the U-15/16 Chicago Fire Academy on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT, and the other battling the U-17/18 Fire squad at 1 p.m. CT. Both games will take place at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill.

On Saturday, the National Team will match up against the Chicago Magic U-15/16 Academy team at 11 a.m. at Northwestern University, while the older squad takes on the Magic U-17/18s at 1 p.m. CT. The Magic also played to a scoreless draw with the U.S. on March 9 in Bradenton.

The two older teams battled to a tense 0-0 draw on March 8 at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., with goalkeepers Earl Edwards for the U.S. and Kit Carson for the Fire both earning shutouts. The National Team holds an undefeated 7-0-2 record in Academy play, while the Fire currently stands in third place in the Mid-American Conference with a 3-1-4 record.

The U.S. Under-17 ‘92s are coming off a four-game tournament in Montaigu, France, where they defeated eventual-champion England, 1-0, and China, 3-1. The U.S. fell to Japan and Italy to come away with a 2-2 record in the tournament. Midfielder Carlos Martinez led the U.S. attack, scoring three goals in four games, and is one of 17 players who traveled to France that will take part in this weekend’s matches. Additionally, four players on the Academy roster – Bryan Dominguez, Gregory Garza, Zac MacMath and Kofi Sarkodie – were part of the U.S. team at the 2007 FIFA Under-17 World Cup in South Korea.

U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy is an effort to formalize the development environment for players throughout the country. Created to provide players with the best possible opportunity to develop, the U.S. Soccer Development Academy has been initiated after a comprehensive review of player development systems in the United States and around the world.

U.S. Under-17 Men’s National Team Roster (Detailed Residency Roster):
GOALKEEPERS (4): Samir Badr (Fairfax, Va.), Zac MacMath (St. Petersburg, Fla.), Spencer Richey (Seattle, Wash.), Brian Sylvestre (Hollywood, Fla.)
DEFENDERS (7): Julio Arjona (Germantown, Md.), Perry Kitchen (Indianapolis, Ind.), Nick Millington (Raleigh, N.C.), Aubrey Perry (Ocoee, Fla.), Shaquille Phillips (Greenbelt, Md.), Tyler Polak (Lincoln, Neb.), Kofi Sarkodie (Huber Heights, Ohio)
MIDFIELDERS (14): Christian Alvarez (Merced, Calif.), Eder Arreola (Chino Hills, Calif.), Zachery Barnes (Flower Mount, Texas), Alex Bramall (Newburgh, N.Y.), Scott Caldwell (Braintree, Mass.), Rob Derschang (Englewood, Colo.), Bryan Duran (Duncanville, Texas), Gregory Garza (Grapevine, Texas), Luis Gil (Garden Grove, Calif.), Alfred Koroma (Dallas, Texas), Carlos Martinez (Las Vegas, Nev.), Chase Miller (Duncannon, Pa.), Alex Shinsky (York, Pa.), Korey Veeder (St. Petersburg, Fla.)
FORWARDS (9): Bryan Dominguez (Atlanta, Ga.), Jaime Gutierrez (Lake Forest, Calif.), Joseph Gyau (Silver Spring, Md.), Drew Hartell (Virginia Beach, Va.), Stefan Jerome (Davie, Fla.), Jack McInerney (Alpharetta, Ga.), Emilio Orozco (Oxnard, Calif.), Brian Span (Somers, N.Y.)