Yanks Abroad spoke with Heerenveen midfielder Michael Bradley about the upcoming 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada this summer. Bradley, 19, is the son of U.S. nen’s national team coach Bob Bradley; he’s expected to be named to the U-20 squad that will be announced on Thursday for an upcoming friendly against a still to determined opponent during next week’s international break.
The youngster believes the camaraderie between the players will help them go far at this summer’s World Championship. “As we get closer (to the tournament), there’s a sense of excitement,” he said. “I don’t go a day or two without talking to Freddy (Adu), Danny (Szetela) or Timmy Ward. We want to make a good run this summer. The key is we have a group of guys who’ve been playing together a long time.”
Bradley hasn’t played with the U-20s since scoring in a 5-1 rout of the Haiti All-Stars in October. He didn’t play a part in January’s CONCACAF qualifying tournament for the world championship because those dates didn’t fall on FIFA’s official designated international release dates, which meant Heerenveen wasn’t required to release the player.