US men play El Salvador in Cup qualifier
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The United States men’s national team is in good position to secure one of three guaranteed berths from CONCACAF to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar entering the home stretch of qualifying. But the stakes of Thursday’s qualifier against El Salvador at Lower.com Field are significant.
With two winnable home games, beginning in Columbus on Thursday night (7 ET, ESPN2), and a crucial away game at Canada on Sunday, the USMNT may as well be looking at this penultimate qualifying window as the opportunity to all but lock up a return to the World Cup after failing to qualify in 2018.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the ninth match of the 14 scheduled games in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying.
USMNT’s remaining qualifying schedule
The USMNT will play two of its final three home games of qualification this window, with a lot of pressure to maximize those points ahead of two of the team’s most difficult road games, which are coming up in March.
After the Americans play El Salvador on Thursday, it’s off to Hamilton, Ontario, to face first-place Canada on Sunday. The Canadians will be highly motivated, having made just one World Cup in 1986. If they beat the U.S., they will have taken four out of six points from both the Americans and Mexico, and, barring a complete collapse, that should ensure the Canadians their second-ever World Cup berth.
U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter’s group will finish this window on Feb. 2 in St. Paul, Minnesota, against Honduras. The U.S. knocked off Honduras on the road earlier in qualifying.
The bare minimum for the U.S. this window will be six out of nine points, though at least a draw against Canada for seven points would be exponentially better. That would put the U.S. in optimal position ahead of the challenging final three games.
USMNT qualifying to this point, starting with a draw against El Salvador
This young U.S. team began its 14-game qualifying journey in San Salvador in front of a raucous crowd on Sept. 2, playing El Salvador to a 0-0 draw. The game itself wasn’t particularly exciting, and the Americans had few scoring chances.
While the USMNT is much more talented than El Salvador, road games in CONCACAF are notorious for being much more difficult than they appear when just glancing at the rosters. There were only three shots on target in the entire game – two for the U.S. – with possession about even for both teams.
At the time, the USMNT was without star attacking midfielder Christian Pulisic. Berhalter deemed that Pulisic wasn’t yet fit enough to play after coming off a bout of the coronavirus. The USMNT was also trying to figure out its striker situation but has since found its No. 1 at the position in 18-year-old Ricardo Pepi, who did not play against El Salvador.
Players openly admitted after the first qualifying window that they were a bit naive thinking they could expect to get all nine points in the first three games, especially with two on the road. The USMNT hasn’t been terrific on the road, but it has managed a 1-1-2 record in away qualifiers.
At home, the USMNT has been excellent, especially since a draw against Canada in the game immediately following the tie against El Salvador. The Americans have won three straight home games, including against rival Mexico on Nov. 12 in Cincinnati.
What awaits Thursday night
So far, only goalkeeper Zack Steffen has not arrived with the USMNT. The team announced he was day-to-day with back tightness.
On home soil with a significant talent advantage and a group that has mostly played eight games together, the only question that remains is how the cold late January weather might affect the Americans’ play.
Accuweather.com is forecasting a temperature of 30 degrees that will feel like 24 degrees at kickoff, with about a 50% chance for snow flurries during the game.
CONCACAF World Cup qualifying standings
1. Canada (4-0-4, 16 points)
2. USA (4-1-3, 15 points)
3. Mexico (4-2-2, 14 points)
4. Panama (4-2-2, 14 points)
5. Costa Rica (2-3-3, 9 points)
6. Jamaica (1-3-4, 7 points)
7. El Salvador (1-4-3, 6 points)
8. Honduras (0-5-3, 3 points)