Bolton Wanderers manager Neil Lennon on Friday said he is furious with U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann for what he called "complete lack of respect" for American defender Tim Ream.
Ream was not originally called into the U.S. squad for the national team's recent friendlies against Colombia and Ireland. But after fellow left center back John Brooks tweaked an ankle in training, Ream was summoned to Dublin 24 hours before the Americans' meeting with the Irish. Ream entered the match in the 87th minute, when the U.S. was trailing 4-1.
#INSERT type:image caption:Bolton Wanderers manager Neil Lennon said it was unfair of the U.S. team to call in Tim Ream at the last minute vs. Ireland.END#
"They call him in on the night before the game so he has to get a flight on Tuesday morning to Dublin and then play one minute of an international," Lennon told the Bolton News. "I want an explanation. They had two games and they should have called him in after that initial game. People wonder why footballers don't want to play for their country any more. I'm not saying that is the case with Tim, but when you see them being treated like that it makes me very angry."
"There is a complete lack of respect for the player and a lack of respect for our club," Lennon continued. "I am still waiting on an explanation from someone. I have contacted the American FA and made my feelings pretty clear."
U.S. Soccer, which announced the switch less than an hour before kickoff on Tuesday, responded to ESPN FC via email about the last-minute call-up.
"Brooks picked up a minor ankle issue in training Monday and was evaluated that night," a USSF spokesman wrote. "The decision was made to keep Brooks out as a precaution and bring in Ream -- who was a short flight away -- as cover. We didn't announce Brooks because our staff had not been able to speak to Hertha Berlin and discuss the situation, and it's not appropriate or respectful to a club to have them find out about a medical issue through the media."
Ream made his U.S. debut in 2010. He didn't play for the U.S. at all in 2012-13 but has enjoyed a resurgence at the international level of late.
The cameo at Aviva Stadium was his fourth appearance since September and 11th overall. The 27-year-old is in his third season with Bolton. He was the second-tier English club's player of the year in 2013-14.