Ex-Las Vegas High’s Gomez has shot at World Cup spot

Herculez Gomez hadn't heard a thing.

No phone calls. No e-mails. No Tweets.

He figured his dream of playing for the United States in the World Cup was over.

But Gomez, who grew up in Las Vegas and starred at Las Vegas High School, will get his chance to show he belongs on soccer's biggest stage. The 28-year-old forward was named to the U.S. squad's 30-man preliminary roster Tuesday and will participate in its World Cup training camp beginning Monday at Princeton, N.J.

"To be honest, I didn't think I'd made it," said Gomez, who led the Mexican Primera Division with 10 goals this season while playing with Puebla. "I didn't hear anything, and I figured I was out. But I'm training with Chivas (USA), and one of the coaches came over to me during a drill and said U.S. Soccer called, and I was on the team.

"I said 'great' and went back into the line and finished the drill."

Gomez's national team experience has been limited to two appearances in 2007 during the Copa America tournament, in which he played a total of 67 minutes.

He faces steep odds to make the final 23-man roster, which will be announced May 30, but said he isn't intimidated by the challenge.

"I still feel I'm on the outside looking in," Gomez said. "There's a lot of guys with much more experience than me. But coach (Bob) Bradley wouldn't bring me in if he didn't think I could contribute."

Bradley said Gomez and fellow forward Edson Buddle, who has been playing with the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer, deserve an opportunity to show they belong with the national team.

"Both Edson and Herculez have had a very good season," Bradley said. "Both have helped their teams a great deal. Edson has been the hottest goal scorer in MLS and has helped the Galaxy get off to a great start. Herculez was an important player with Puebla and scored a lot of goals. We feel that both of them have shown enough for us to take a look at them as we start the camp."

Gomez feels he has a small window of opportunity to prove himself next week.

"I think I have to do more than the rest of the guys," he said. "I don't have the experience they do, so if they're giving 100 percent, I have to give 110. I have to do something special for the coaches to notice me."

Actually, if he can keep doing what he did with Puebla -- where he became the first U.S. player to lead a foreign league in scoring -- it might be enough for Gomez to secure a spot on the final roster.

"I think the key was I was used up front in the middle, where I could finish," said Gomez, who came off the bench with Puebla. "I hadn't played that position for a while -- I had been used on the outside, away from the goal. At Puebla, I could use my natural skills, and I had a great season."

Gomez's inclusion on the U.S. squad might have come at the expense of Charlie Davies. The talented goal-scoring forward was involved in a near-fatal car accident seven months ago. Davies was left off the preliminary roster because he had not fully recovered from the injuries he suffered in the crash.

Now it is up to Gomez to take advantage of the opportunity.

"The one thing I thing I've got going for me is I'm not your prototypical U.S. forward," Gomez said. "I think my ability to come in and change the tempo right away and also score gives me a skill that can help the team."

"Frankly, it's amazing that I'm even in this position. Millions of players dream about playing in the World Cup, and here I am, this close from having it happen to me."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.