PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Timbers today announced that five players have been called up for international duty. Defenders Futty Danso (The Gambia) and Steve Purdy (El Salvador), midfielders Diego Chara (Colombia) and James Marcelin (Haiti) and forward Brian Umony (Uganda) will join their respective national teams for upcoming matches during FIFA international match dates.
While away on national team duty, the Timbers’ five international call-ups will not miss a regular-season match and are scheduled to return to Portland in time for the club’s regular-season home finale on Friday, Oct. 14, against the Houston Dynamo at JELD-WEN Field.
Chara, 25, was named to Colombia’s 23-player roster for its upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Bolivia on Tuesday, Oct. 11, at Estadio Hernando Siles in La Paz, Bolivia. Of the 23 players on the roster named by head coach Leonel Alvarez, Chara is the only one with club ties to MLS. Chara receives his first call-up to the Colombia National Team since making his international debut on Nov. 17, 2010, in a friendly against Peru.
Danso, 28, receives his fourth call-up for The Gambia this year as the Scorpions face Burkina Faso in their final group match of 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying on Saturday, Oct. 8, at Independence Stadium in Baku, The Gambia. Danso, who earned his first senior cap in a friendly on March 29, has helped The Gambia to recent victories in friendlies against Gabon (June 7) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Aug. 10).
Marcelin, 25, has been recalled by the Haiti National Team for 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against the U.S. Virgin Islands on Friday, Oct. 7, and Curacao on Tuesday, Oct. 11. Marcelin, a member of Haiti’s national team pool since 2007, featured in wins over both the U.S. Virgin Islands and Curacao in September. He scored in Haiti’s 6-0 win over the U.S. Virgin Islands on Sept. 2, in the first match played on Haiti soil since an earthquake hit the country in 2010.
Purdy, 26, rejoins the El Salvador National Team for 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against the Dominican Republic on Friday, Oct. 7, and Cayman Islands on Tuesday, Oct. 11. Purdy, who has family ties to El Salvador, made his international debut during the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, starting in El Salvador’s quarterfinal match against Panama. He was called in for recent World Cup qualifiers against the Dominican Republic and Venezuela in September.
Umony, 22, joins the Uganda National Team for a 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Kenya on Saturday, Oct. 8, at Mandela National Stadium in Kampala, Uganda. Uganda currently sits on top of Group J as it enters its final group mach of the tournament’s qualifying stage. Umony has amassed eight goals in 11 international appearances for the Cranes since 2008. His last appearance for Uganda was on Sept. 4, 2010, in a 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Angola.
