The New Zealand squad that will take part in the World Cup qualifiers and the matches against Honduras and El Salvador has been recently announced.
Due to the injury to veteran Ryan Nelsen, it has been announced that that uncapped players Ian Hogg and Adam McGeorge will be part of the squad. Adam McGeorge was part of the New Zealand under 23 team and used to captain the team.
Ian Hogg, meanwhile, has already appeared in one Olympic tournament and this will be his second Olympics. Ryan Nelsen has recently been injured while playing for Tottenham in the final few matches of the Premier league season.
As a result, it has been revealed that he will be out of the World Cup qualifiers. The medical staff has said that Ryan Nelsen will be out for up to 3 weeks due to the injury. The former Blackburn defender recently made the switch to Tottenham in the January transfer window.
“I met with the doctors at Spurs while I was in London recently and am fully across the situation with Ryan and where he is at physically. The injury he’s has been carrying needs rest and we’ve not going to do the player or our team any favours by throwing him into the demanding schedule we’ve got coming up and risking greater long-term damage,” New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert said.
Dan Keat, Chris Killen, and Winston Reid have not been released from their respective MLS clubs due to the fixture list. The New Zealand national football team will be taking on El Salvador in Texas before they face Honduras. They will be facing a number of qualifying matches for the prospect of making it into the next stage of the World Cup qualifying that will take place in September, October and March.