The USMNT is currently preparing for its second and final friendly in its 2017 January Camp, against a common opponent, Jamaica.
The last time the United States faced Jamaica was on July 22nd, 2015. For many, that day was the beginning of the end of Jurgen Klinsmann’s reign as US Head Coach as they lost to Jamaica in the Gold Cup semi-finals, the final score 1-2.
Since the early 90’s, the US has only lost to Jamaica twice, with both of those losses coming in the last five years. For those that might suggest that Jamaica should be a pushover team, the numbers say otherwise.
Their captain, who also captains recent English Premier League winner Leicester City, Wes Morgan, is proof that the quality of Jamaica’s players has gone up dramatically in the last 5 years.
By all means though, this is a friendly. January Camp is often called ‘Camp Cupcake’, a time for new MLS players to make their marks and state their cases for the US Men’s team. Results are usually mixed as many of these players are either receiving their first cap, or coming back to the camp after several years.
Many of the best US players aren’t playing and the same goes for Jamaica, which is missing their usual captain. Even with lowered expectations due to the camp setting, this is the first time new coach Bruce Arena has been with many of these players.
These games are an opportunity to see what tactical changes he has in mind as he begins his second tenure as the USMNT Head Coach. Here is a look at the player pool for the match.
GOALKEEPERS (3): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake), Luis Robles (New York Red Bulls)
DEFENDERS (8): DaMarcus Beasley (Unattached), Steve Birnbaum (D.C. United), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Greg Garza (Atlanta United), Chad Marshall (Seattle Sounders), Jorge Villafana (Santos Laguna), Walker Zimmerman (FC Dallas), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Sporting Kansas City), Sebastian Lletget (LA Galaxy), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Chris Pontius (Philadelphia Union)
FORWARDS (3): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution), Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders)
Notable players who left camp are Jermaine Jones and Sacha Kljestan.
Next: USMNT: Player Ratings vs. Serbia & post game reaction
This pool of players are no pushovers. Many of them have been on the fringe of the USMNT for several years and a few impressed last week against Serbia.
In putting together a line up for this Friday’s game, I thought about how Altidore spoke about his displeasure of being a single striker and with Morris receiving high praise from Arena, I decided to put together a 4-4-2 diamond formation to accommodate both strikers.
—————-Rimando—————-
-Zusi—Zimmerman—Birnbaum—Garza-
——————Bradley——————
———Bedoya———Nagbe————
——————Feilhaber——————
———–Altidore——Morris————
It’s worth nothing that this back line is really the same as last weeks and for decent reason. Rimando has stated he’d like to be start for the USMNT and after a strong performance last week there’s no reason to not keep him in there for a second game.
I’d rather put Evans in at Right Back, but imagine that Arena might want to see Zusi play there for another game to see how he settles in it. While Garza who’s returning from injury could also benefit from more minutes before heading to Atlanta FC.
In the midfield, I’ve slated Feilhaber to receive the start with the #10 role that fans have been begging to see for ages. This almost seems obvious with the exit of Kljestan, as there isn’t really anyone else to play there. Bedoya has been a workhorse and mainstay of the US team for several years, but wonder if his stock is starting to fall.
Nagbe had a great first game under Arena and deserves to play more meaningful minutes. Bradley is an obvious choice, barring injury; expect him to continue wearing the captain’s arm band. There is a need to see Altidore and Morris on the field together, so hopefully these two can play well up top together.
As far as the six subs to expect, I’d project Jorge Villafana for Garza, McCarty for Bedoya, Pontius for Nagbe, Lletget for Feilhaber, Agudelo for Altidore, and Evans for Zusi (not in that order).
It’s the end of the January camp. Some players are ready to begin preseason with their MLS clubs, others want to make their mark to earn a call up during World Cup Qualifying. It’s always hard to tell what level of play or cohesion to expect from these games, but expect a competitive one against Jamaica.
Next: USMNT: Location set for World Cup Qualifer against Honduras
Predicted score: 1-0 USA. US will hopefully look like an attacking and dominant force, but getting the final ball will likely continue to be an issue for out of form players. A stout defense and hard working midfield should prevent Jamaica from scoring any goals.
The USMNT plays Friday, Feb 3 @ 7 PM EST