Miles Robinson and Kamal Miller named to Gold Cup preliminary rosters

Three years ago, Miles Robinson and Kamal Miller were playing together at centerback for the Syracuse Orange. As of yesterday, both are eligible to be called up to their respective National Teams, with CONCACAF releasing the preliminary 2019 Gold Cup Rosters.

Robinson has played exceptionally and consistently this season, for Atlanta United FC, who took the centerback second overall in the 2017 MLS Superdraft. He has settled in as the starter for the Five Stripes, playing the full 90 for all but one of the 12 MLS matches on the year, as well as the early season CONCACAF Champions League matches. The 22 year old has been noted by Dirty South Soccer numerous times as the team’s most consistent and best overall defender on the year for one of the best defenses in the league, keeping the likes of Florentin Pogba out of the lineup. He may not make the final 23 man roster for the United States, but should at worst be one of the first names on the U-23 Olympic Qualifying roster this fall. He joins former Orange Alex Bono as a recent USMNT callup.

Another former Orange centerback, Kamal Miller played his way onto the Orlando City SC roster in the preseason. He then happened to fall into a starting role with the club in the spring, due to a litany of issues with other defenders on the roster. Since the start of the season, he’s started four matches and been on the bench for the remainder. As a first year player, even making the game day 18 has been a great accomplishment for the young man. The Scarborough, Ontario native will be a potential selection for the Canadian National Team for this summer’s tournament. He is potentially the first former Orange selected since midfield standout Patrice Bernier retired in 2017.

The final 23-man rosters for the tournament will be called from this group and any replacements during the tournament, for injury or otherwise, will be required to be from these rosters. The Gold Cup, the confederation championship for CONCACAF, will kick off off on 6/15/2019 with Miller’s Canada side taking on Martinique.