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Football

18th Jul 2016

Steven Gerrard kept off MLS All Star roster by some brilliantly American names

The public have spoken

Tom Victor

The American public have had their say, and they don’t want Steven Gerrard taking part in the MLS All Star game this summer.

The former Liverpool captain may have recently found his shooting boots again, but the public vote for the 26-man roster sees the LA Galaxy midfielder miss out.

He may yet earn a place as one of the MLS Commissioner’s wildcard picks for the game against Arsenal on July 28, and he’s at least gone one better than Frank Lampard. Gerrard’s former England international team-mate didn’t even make the longlist.

We’re sure you’re wondering who is involved if Gerrard hasn’t made the cut. Well, we’ve had a look and the answer is Americans. Lots of Americans.

Mexico v United States

Joining MLS’ most popular player Andrea Pirlo are no fewer than 11 players given international caps by Jurgen Klinsmann, plus two who are yet to make their international bow.

Possession is key against Arsenal, and to be fair to the public, if you want someone in the team who will trap the ball, would you pick someone called Wil Trapp or someone not called Wil Trapp? That’s what we thought.

The uncapped duo, meanwhile, are both defenders: the brilliantly-named Keegan Rosenberry, who sounds more like an entry on the Dulux paint chart than he does a footballer, and right-back Andrew Farrell.

We know what you’re thinking, how can Farrell compete with his colleague’s name? Well, you haven’t seen his Twitter handle yet.

farrell

There are, of course, plenty of more recognisable names on the list.

Kaka is there, of course, along with Didier Drogba, David Villa and – perhaps the biggest star of all – Liam Ridgewell.

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