Zak Whitbread's efforts in bringing Premier League football to Norwich City were not enough to book a summer ticket to the Concacaf Gold Cup.
The centre-back missed out on a place in Bob Bradley's United States squad for the June tournament, just two months after he was handed a first called-up to the international set-up – only for a minor back injury to keep him at Carrow Road.
The 27-year-old came back from a string of more serious knocks at the start of his City career to play a significant part in the Canaries' Championship promotion push.
Bradley said: 'Zak had a very good second half of the season — injury free, helped his team to gain promotion.
'We've had a chance to watch him. In a perfect world, this would've been a nice time to get to know him better because we have not had him in a camp. But when we put the roster together, it just didn't work for Zak.
'We hope that he'll continue to play well and we'll have a chance to see him up close in the future.'
The States' first game in the Gold Cup will be in Detriot on June 7 against Canada, who will have City striker Simeon Jackson to call upon.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here