Tim Ream is winning a lot of new fans with his displays for Fulham this season, including Man City head coach Pep Guardiola.
Now Pep just needs to work on getting Ream’s age right.
Ream was included in the U.S. national team’s World Cup squad on Wednesday, as Gregg Berhalter rewarded the defender for his excellent campaign in the Premier League.
Speaking on ESPN’s “Futbol Americas” after releasing his roster, Berhalter recounted a conversation between Ream and Guardiola after last weekend’s Premier League match between Man City and Fulham.
“Tim Ream just played against Man City and after the game, Guardiola walks up to him and says, ‘If you were 24 instead of 34, you’d be playing for me,'” Berhalter said.
“So Tim said, ‘It’s too bad I’m not 34, I’m 35.'”
‘Have you watched any Fulham games lately?’
Despite his strong campaign with Fulham, Ream was a somewhat surprising inclusion on the World Cup squad because he hasn’t played for the USMNT in more than a year.
Asked at a press conference about selecting Ream, Berhalter responded: “Have you watched any Fulham games lately? Then you know why we brought him in.
“He was in the Premier League three years ago, and he struggled, the whole team struggled. And he went to the Championship and he started performing better, and they got promoted. And now he’s in the Premier League, and he’s a top performer for his team. It’s really hard to ignore stuff like that.
“And by the way, he’s been a guy that’s been with us since day one. So to me, all the pieces were aligned to bring him back into the squad. Based on what we’re seeing, the level he’s playing at, he’s ready to play in a World Cup for sure.”
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