da fazobetai: USMNT Olympic squad boss Marko Mitrovic had his say on if any first-team USMNT stars will be eligible to play in both Copa America and the Olympics.
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USMNT Olympic squad announces June camp rosterPress conference with boss Marko MitrovicSome first-team players could feature in Paris GamesWHAT HAPPENED?
In a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Mitrovic shared that he has been in conversation with first-team manager Gregg Berhalter about potentially using players featuring in the Copa America in the Paris Olympic Games.
Multiple players who are age-eligible are available for selection, as are the overage players, too. However, both U.S. bosses are also in discussion with the players' clubs to determine their availability during European preseason to ensure they are not overloading them with match congestion.
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"So for all the players that are in consideration and registered for the Olympic Games, we communicate with the clubs whether those clubs are based in the U.S. or abroad. I think that that collaboration is very important because as we know the Olympic Games are not mandatory for the players to be released and just that clubs know what is our program, what is our idea to just kind of educate them with the Olympic Games and our process there, and obviously to learn if players are going to be available.
"There is a possibility for some guys to play both Copa America and the Olympic Games. We are working on that. Obviously, we know that it's not going to be easy to get the players for that and I think this is going to be very case-by-case and player-by-player – we cannot put them in the same bracket.
"We know they all play in different clubs and different clubs have different approaches and some players have a different load during the season and, for some players, it would be easier to play both tournaments definitely the other so that's what I'm saying it's case by case."
GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
The likes of Gio Reyna, Yunus Musah, Ricardo Pepi and more all all age-eligible, while veterans like Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic are all overage players who could technically be eligible, too, if the U.S. so desired to use one of the three available slots on them.
The issue presented, however, is that a lot of players have already accumulated a heavy amount of minutes over the course of their respective regular seasons. Having them play in two tournaments could be dangerous for their health.
Players who did not feature regularly and did not play a ton of regular-season minutes, though, could be ones they look at to potentially pull double-duty at both Copa America and the Paris Olympics.
The two players that immediately come to mind are both Reyna and Pepi – and both play in positions of need for the U23 USMNT.
Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR THE U23 USMNT?
The U.S. kick off the Olympic Games on July 24 against France. In Group A action, they'll also take on New Zealand and Guinea.
In the buildup, they will have one friendly against Japan on June 11 during their final camp before departing for France in early July.