Three Philadelphia Union Players Earn International Call-Ups
Andre Blake to participate in international friendly for Jamaica;
Mark McKenzie and Matt Real called into United States Under-20 National Team camp
CHESTER, Pa. (March 16, 2018) – Philadelphia Union announced today that three of their players have earned international call-ups by their respective federations. Goalkeeper Andre Blake is set to join Jamaica for an international friendly, while U.S. Soccer also announced that defenders Mark McKenzie and Matt Real have been named to the roster for the United States Under-20 National Team’s training camp in Spain.
McKenzie and Real will join the USYNT in Alicante, Spain for the team’s first international preparation for the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in 2019. The camp includes three friendlies on March 21, March 23 and March 27.
Signed as a Homegrown Player prior to the season, McKenzie previously was called up for the inaugural United States Youth National Team Summit Camp in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, where he was with the U.S. U-20s. He previously played for the U-18s while also attending camps for the U-16s and U-15s.
Also signed as a Homegrown earlier this winter, Real joined McKenzie at the USYNT Summit Camp. Previously, he was with the U.S. U-18s, including for the 2017 U-18 Lisbon International Tournament, where he started all three matches against Japan, Norway and Portugal.
Meanwhile, Blake will join the Reggae Boyz in their friendly against Antigua and Barbuda in Kingston, Jamaica on March 25. The goalkeeper has been a mainstay for the Jamaican international squad, earning 31 caps over his career. His debut came in a friendly against Barbados on March 3, 2014. He has since started for Jamaica in the 2014 Caribbean Cup as well as FIFA World Cup qualification and the Copa America Centenario 2016, where he played every minute of every match. He also received a call-up to represent Jamaica during the Group Stage in the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Following the tournament, he was named the Golden Glove winner as well as to the Best XI for the event.
