Brad Evans called into USMNT training camp

As if there weren't enough things to be annoyed about with the Seattle Sounders offseason, now comes this: Brad Evans has been added to the United States national team's training roster. Evans was originally given a pass on the first USMNT training camp of 2016, but Jurgen Klinsmann has apparently decided he absolutely needs the versatile 30-year-old for a pair of friendlies against Iceland (Jan. 31) and Canada (Feb. 5).

While this is just another sign that Evans continues to be part of Klinsmann's vision for the USMNT going forward, it comes at the cost of valuable training time with the Sounders. The first competitive match of the Sounders season is a CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal against Club America on Feb. 23, and training camp officially opens on Jan. 22 . Evans won't start training with the Sounders until Feb. 7.

If one were take an optimistic view of this call-up, Evans will get an extra week of high-level training and could even get into a couple matches. And while Evans is the Sounders presumed starting center back, he's already plenty familiar with his partner Chad Marshall and the rest of the starting XI will likely be very similar to the one the season ended with. Evans has gone through a similar process in previous preseasons as well.

That said, there's always the possibility of Evans picking up an injury and as comfortable as he may be with his Sounders teammates, the season is starting much earlier than it has in past seasons.

There's a distinct possibility that this won't end up being a bad thing, but the chances of this actually improving the Sounders' chances against Club America are pretty thin.