United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann was unapologetic after picking a veteran-heavy squad in an attempt to win the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Since the 2014 World Cup, Klinsmann has embarked on a process of refreshing the USA's national team, with the likes of 22-year-old Bobby Wood, Jordan Morris (20), Juan Agudelo (22) and Joe Corona (24) impressing in friendlies this year.
"It's not about developing players for the next couple of weeks, it's about winning that Gold Cup and qualifying for the Confederations Cup 2017," Klinsmann said in a statement released by U.S. Soccer. "So we've got to put the development side on the backburner for a few weeks, and then we're going to pick it back up because the only way we can develop the players and get them better and better is by giving them opportunities."
"Going into a Gold Cup, especially in our region here, experience means a lot," he said.
"You need players that stay calm in very emotional and very difficult and very tough battles.
"It can get nasty, things might not go your way in some moments, so you have to stay cool and you have to always be on top of things. I think the experience that players like Brad Guzan, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey, Chris Wondolowski, Nick Rimando have, just to name a few of them, those guys bring the experience with them to stay calm and get the job done."
