World Cup Qualifier: USMNT vow not to overlook Jamaica as next window opens
By Doug McIntyre
FOX Sports Soccer Writer
Recency bias is real, and that’s a good thing for the United States men’s national team.
After the USMNT played five completely underwhelming halves of soccer last month to kick off the qualifying tournament for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, a 45-minute blitz led by 18-year-old debutant Ricardo Pepi in Honduras allowed the Americans to turn a 1-0 deficit into a stirring 4-1 victory.
The comeback gave Gregg Berhalter’s squad a total of five points and some momentum heading into Thursday’s qualifier against sputtering Jamaica (7:45 p.m. ET, ESPN2/ESPN+/Univision/TUDN).
On the surface, the match in Austin, Texas against the Reggae Boyz – who sit dead last in the CONCACAF region’s eight-nation "Octagonal" standings after three matches – might look relatively easy. But anyone who expects a cakewalk would be wise to remember the way last month’s window began, not how it ended.
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"Insinuating that it’s going to be an easy game – it's going to be far from that," Berhalter said during Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. "It’s a difficult team. They pushed Mexico to the absolute limit in Mexico City at altitude [last month]."
A late goal gave Mexico the victory in that one, but there’s no shame in coming up empty at Estadio Azteca. The U.S has never won a World Cup qualifying match there.
Jamaica also tied Costa Rica on the road in September. The Americans haven’t done that since 1985. And with key attackers Christian Pulisic (ankle) and Giovanni Reyna (hamstring) and veteran central defender John Brooks (back) all unavailable this month, USMNT fans shouldn’t take any opponent lightly.
The U.S. players certainly don’t seem to be looking ahead to Sunday’s trip to Panama or next week’s contest versus Costa Rica in Columbus, Ohio. That’s no coincidence. On a recent U.S. Soccer podcast, Berhalter suggested that by taking a bigger-picture view last month, the intensity of the group was lacking early on.
"The whole team is really just focusing on this match," center-back Miles Robinson said. "We understand it's a big game."
It’s a big game for Jamaica, too. Theodore Whitmore’s side needs to pick up points soon or risk digging itself the sort of hole that the U.S was unable to climb out of during the disastrous 2018 World Cup cycle. So Whitmore might be tempted to take more risks than usual in attack, especially with top strikers Leon Bailey and Michail Antonio out. Bailey has a quad injury; Antonio, the Premier League’s August Player of the Month, decided to stay with West Ham.
"Once they go forward, they go forward in numbers," said U.S. midfielder Cristian Roldan, who like Robinson played in the 1-0 victory over Jamaica in July’s Gold Cup quarterfinal. "They can leave themselves exposed in the back."
With the USMNT's two most creative players in Pulisic and Reyna missing, getting behind the Reggae Boyz’s defense and pulling them wide to open space in front of goal is the plan. Berhalter said on Wednesday that live-wire vets Paul Arriola and Gyasi Zardes, who were both hurt last month, will be counted on this window. So will wingers Tim Weah and Brenden Aaronson, and winger/striker Matthew Hoppe, who scored the winner against Jamaica in the Gold Cup.
"We're losing talent for sure," Roldan said of Pulisic and Reyna. "We're losing a lot of quality guys that dribble and find that final pass.
"However, on the flip side, now we have more runners. We have guys that are playing off the ball – less ball-to-feet and now more [passes] into space. So we can really stretch guys in behind with the players that we have here."
Berhalter wouldn’t reveal which goalkeeper will be in net on Thursday, though Matt Turner seems the likely pick over Zack Steffen following Turner’s near-flawless performances last month. But the coach did reveal that Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie – who was sent home from camp last month for violating team rules – will start in his return to the team.
There’s also an important decision to make in the heart of the defense after Brooks and fellow left-footer Tim Ream (family reasons) withdrew from the roster. The three candidates to line up next to Miles Robinson – Chris Richards, Mark McKenzie and Walker Zimmerman – are all righties who have never played in a World Cup qualifier before.
"They do lack experience, but the only way to get experience is by actually getting on the field," said Berhalter, who pointed out that the U.S is already fielding one of the world’s youngest national teams. "We think we have a physical-enough group of center backs, and it's time to get them some opportunities."
They’ll have to be quick studies. The 16 Americans who made their qualifying debuts last month found out fast how hard these games are and how rapidly things can change.
"I think that coming into last camp, maybe we were just a little bit naive and we didn't really know what to expect," said midfielder Tyler Adams, the likely captain in Pulisic’s place. "We had to use those first three games as a learning process."
Another stiff test awaits.
One of the most prominent soccer journalists in North America, Doug McIntyre has covered United States men’s and women’s national teams in more than a dozen countries, including multiple FIFA World Cups. Before joining FOX Sports, the New York City native was a staff writer for Yahoo Sports and ESPN. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.
