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NEW YORK -- Five members of the United States squad that competed in the World Cup were among the "First XI" named Wednesday to take on British powerhouse Chelsea FC in next month's MLS All-Star Game.
Team USA members Landon Donovan and Chris Albright of the Los Angeles Galaxy, Clint Dempsey of the New England Revolution, Jimmy Conrad of the Kansas City Wizards, and Eddie Pope of Real Salt Lake all were selected Wednesday, though the "First XI" will not necessarily be the starting 11 players against Chelsea at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., on Aug. 5.
The "First XI" was determined by a four-tiered voting process of an online fan vote, MLS coaches and general managers, media members and MLS players. Each carried a weight of 25 percent.
Defenders Conrad, Albright and Pope will play in front of D.C. United goalkeeper Troy Perkins.
Donovan, who had a miserable World Cup, and Dempsey, who scored the lone U.S. goal in Germany, will be joined in the midfield by Dempsey's Revolution teammate Shalrie Joseph, Christian Gomez of D.C. United and Dwayne De Rosario of the Houston Dynamo.
Starting up front will be forwards Jaime Moreno of United and Ante Razov of Chivas USA.
The full 18-man squad will be announced Monday. The All-Stars will be coached by Peter Nowak of United, whose squad has the best overall record in the league at 12-1-5. Nowak will name five additional players, while MLS commissioner Don Garber will select the other two.
Chelsea, which has won the past two English Premier League crowns, has added Ukrainian star Andriy Shevchenko and Germany's Michael Ballack in the offseason.
"We are excited to announce the All-Star First XI and give MLS fans a glimpse of who will be facing one of the strongest soccer teams in the world, Chelsea FC," Garber said. "The game will be competitive, it will be intriguing and exciting for the fans and we're confident it will showcase the talent in our league."
