USMNT stars headline MLS All-Star game squad
United States men’s national team stars Jordan Morris, Walker Zimmerman and Jesús Ferreira headline the 26-man roster for the Major League Soccer 2023 All-Star Game to be played on July 19.
Midfielders Thiago Almada and Hany Mukhtar, forwards Giorgos Giakoumakis and Dénis Bouanga and emerging homegrown stars John Tolkin and Aidan Morris were also among the 26 players to make the cut, announced Tuesday.
The MLS All-Stars, managed by D.C. United coach Wayne Rooney, will take on Arsenal at D.C. United’s home stadium, Audi Field.
It will mark the second appearance in an MLS All-Star game for Arsenal.
The roster was selected through a combination of fan, player, and media voting (12 players), designations by All-Star head coach Wayne Rooney of host club D.C. United (12 players), and a pair of selections by MLS commissioner Don Garber.
The commissioner’s picks for the 2023 MLS All-Star Game are Chicago Fire FC‘s Kei Kamara and CF Montréal’s Mathieu Choinière.
One of the league’s most prolific scorers, Kamara sits one goal shy of second place in MLS history with 144 goals, trailing only Landon Donovan (145) and Chris Wondolowski (171).
A homegrown midfielder out of Québec, Choinière has recorded a career-best and team-high five goal contributions for CF Montréal this season and has been a key component of the club’s rebuilt attack in 2023.
Cincinnati, which leads the Supporters’ Shield standings with 43 points, garnered three rosters spots with midfielder Luciano Acosta and defenders Álvaro Barreal and Matt Miazga.
The 2023 MLS All-Star roster by position and selection mechanism:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Roman Bürki (St. Louis CITY SC / voted in), Tyler Miller (D.C. United / coach’s selection), Djordje Petrović (New England Revolution / coach’s selection)
DEFENDERS (7): Álvaro Barreal (FC Cincinnati / voted in), Jon Gallagher (Austin FC / voted in), Ryan Hollingshead (LAFC / coach’s selection), Matt Miazga (FC Cincinnati / voted in), Tim Parker (St. Louis City SC / coach’s selection), John Tolkin (New York Red Bulls / coach’s selection), Walker Zimmerman (Nashville SC / voted in)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Luciano Acosta (FC Cincinnati / voted in), Thiago Almada (Atlanta United / voted in), Mathieu Choinière (CF Montréal / commissioner’s selection), Héctor Herrera (Houston Dynamo FC / coach’s selection), José Martinez (Philadelphia Union / coach’s selection), Aidan Morris (Columbus Crew / voted in), Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC / voted in), Riqui Puig (LA Galaxy / coach’s selection), Lucas Zelarayán (Columbus Crew / coach’s selection)
FORWARDS / WINGERS (7): Christian Benteke (D.C. United / coach’s selection), Dénis Bouanga (LAFC / voted in), Cristian Espinoza (San Jose Earthquakes / coach’s selection), Jesús Ferreira (FC Dallas / voted in), Giorgos Giakoumakis (Atlanta United / coach’s selection), Kei Kamara (Chicago Fire FC / commissioner’s selection), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC / voted in)
