Is London calling for U.S. soccer?

The future of U.S. Soccer will be on display in Nashville, Tenn., this week.

The U.S. under-23 national team will compete at LP Field in the opening round of regional qualifying for the 2012 Summer Olympics with a diverse group of players and a coach that demonstrate the ever evolving nature of the sport for those who wear the U.S. jersey.

The roster includes D.C. United 21-year-old goalkeeper Bill Hamid, whose father is originally from Sierra Leone. There’s also Norwegian-born midfielder Mix Diskerud, whose mother is American, and German-born forward Terrence Boyd, whose father is American. Boyd and Diskerud play overseas in Germany and Belgium, two of the five countries (Mexico, Norway, Portugal are the others) where players on the roster make their professional home besides the U.S. Boyd, 21, made his U.S. senior team debut last month against Italy but hasn’t yet played for Borussia Dortmund’s first team.

“We’re fully aware of how big this is,” said Hamid, who is expected to miss three games in the net for D.C. United during qualifying. “The Olympics, really you’re speechless because all you see. You just get thoughts of what you’ve seen, the big time athletes, the track athletes, the swimmers, all these big names that have done huge things in the sporting world. We have a chance to make it there. We definitely want to take advantage of it.”

The U.S. squad is coached by Caleb Porter, who assumed the role on a short-term basis on top of his full-time job with Akron, even though questions grow every year over the importance of the college game.

The task over three games in five days isn’t quite as complicated: finish in the top two of a four-team group in Nashville that includes Cuba, Canada and El Salvador, earning one of four spots in the knockout rounds in Kansas City. Win in the semifinals on March 31, and the ticket is punched for London, since the top two teams advance to the Olympics.

To do so, Porter must bring together a group not quite as seasoned as those who play in the World Cup. In some cases, it includes taking the next step by bringing along some of his former college players, such as D.C. United second-year defensive midfielder Perry Kitchen, who won an NCAA title with the Zips. In Nashville, Kitchen, 20, is expected to pair in the middle of the U.S. defense with the San Jose Earthquakes’ Ike Opara, the oldest player on the team, who turned 23 last month.

“This is a pressure situation,” Porter said. “We have to win to qualify, and these guys, because they’ve played in a pro environment, they’ve been dealing with that already. Every time they take the field, they’re playing for keeps and for a living. … I think that’s helped to polish them — tactically, mentally — a bit more than some of the college guys.”

Because clubs are not obligated by FIFA to release players, Porter won’t have a number of regular U.S. senior team contributors at his disposal. But he will have Potomac native Freddy Adu, who rekindled his own career last season after years of bouncing around Europe and is still young enough to be eligible. Silver Spring-raised 19-year-old Joe Gyau, who plays for Hoffenheim in Germany, could also start in Porter’s attack-minded 4-3-3 formation.

“I wish them the best of luck,” said United coach Ben Olsen, who played on the team that finished fourth the 2000 Olympics. “I hope we don’t see them for a while because that means they’re doing well and they qualify. It’s one of the experiences that I’ll never forget. I really treasured it, and I hope they get there, and they both deserve it.”

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