USMNT: Italy friendly the ultimate test of progress in spite of World Cup
By Josh Sippie
The USMNT will be in a dead zone this summer, but they are already busy scheduling friendlies, and with Italy on the docket, we will see just how far the team has come.
The Italian Football Association has announced that they plan to play the USMNT in a friendly on Novermber 20 of this year. While that is still a hearty seven months away, it’s never too soon to start thinking about what such a friendly could mean.
These are two teams that are in massive transition phases. They both fell short of World Cup qualification, despite the expectations heaped on each side that they, at the very least, qualify for every major competition.
A mix of poor management and a bit of an age problem on the pitch led to their combined demises, and now they face a rebuilding phase that they will undoubtedly both be eager to get underway.
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With no summer competition to test their mettle in, the USMNT will be looking to bring their team of young, fantastic talents together in other ways.
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Players like Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic and perhaps Josh Sargent, depending on his international status, will be on summer break and eager to suit up for their country, but the MLS ranks like Tyler Adams will still have a full meal on their plate.
It’s a balancing act for the red, white and blue, who have yet to hire a new manager, and who may not until after the World Cup makes more options available to them.
As such, this rebuilding process is still in it’s early infancy. There isn’t a whole lot to look forward to because anything between now and at least when they have a new manager can’t be chalked up to much more than churning the wheels. The Portugal friendly was the opening bell, indicating a changing of the tides, but there is so much more to go.
Italy in November is a different story. Italy in November will be the perfect test to see just how far a much younger USMNT has gotten in their pursuit to put the gloomy past behind them. They will be facing one of the most historic footballing nations in the world, who are in a similar position. Almost identical, in fact.
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There could be no better match to set as a deadline for progress. It’s the perfect length away that there is still time to build and figure some things out, but it’s close enough that we can all look forward to it and understand what it means, despite the deceptive “friendly” term.