While the hype has continued to build for the inaugural A-League All Stars match match this Saturday, an Australian football icon now plying his trade on the other side of the world has secured his own All Stars selection.
While the hype has continued to build for the inaugural A-League All Stars match this Saturday, an Australian football icon now plying his trade on the other side of the world has secured his own All Stars selection.
Tim Cahill will make his debut for the MLS All Stars as the North American representative team get set to take on the might of Serie A side AS Roma.
Cahill was selected by league commissioner Don Garber as one of his two selections to the 18-man side that features the best players in the league.
His selection follows a strong start to his first full season in the MLS, having notched up five goals and three assists in 17 games including a goal in New York-s latest 4-0 victory over the then first placed Montreal Impact.
Cahill's international form would not have gone unnoticed either as he was one of the Socceroos stars that helped Australia to their third straight World Cup qualification for Brazil 2014.
He will now be looking to continue his strong form and give the Italian giants a real shake with the MLS All Stars announcing an impressive line-up that has plenty of big game experience.
Alongside the Socceroos legend will be his New York Red Bulls teammate and French stalwart Thierry Henry, LA Galaxy-s Robbie Keane, former Italian international Marco Di Vaio (Montreal Impact) and a host of US national players.
They will take on a Roma team that finished sixth in the last Serie A season to just miss out on qualifying for the UEFA Europa Cup.
The team features Italian World Cup winners Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi, who Cahill and the Socceroos met in the second round of the 2006 World Cup, along with US international Michael Bradley and Romanian goalkeeper Bogdan Lobont.
In a positive sign for the new initiative in Australia, the MLS All-Stars game has been well received since it was introduced in 2003 with the All Stars winning six games, drawing one and losing two over the match-s existence.
Those two losses came at the hands of the Foxtel A-League All Stars inaugural opponents Manchester United in 2009 and 2010, while the side has also played Everton, Fulham, Chelsea and West Ham.
The match will take place on July 31 in Kansas City at 8pm local time (11am, 1 August AEST).
2013 MLS All-Star Gameday Roster
Goalkeeper: Raul Fernández (FC Dallas), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)
Defenders: Corey Ashe (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Tony Beltran (Real Salt Lake), Aurélien Collin (Sporting Kansas City), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders FC)
Midfielders: Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Patrice Bernier (Montreal Impact), Tim Cahill (New York Red Bulls), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo), Will Johnson (Portland Timbers), Mike Magee (Chicago Fire), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
Forwards: Marco Di Vaio (Montreal Impact), Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy), Camilo Sanvezzo (Vancouver Whitecaps FC), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes)