The USA men’s national soccer team hosts regional rivals Mexico in a friendly match to be played on Wednesday night in Glendale, Arizona.
The friendly will be the first meeting of 2023 between the two North American giants, falling outside a designated FIFA international match window.
Still, it’s never truly a “friendly” between these two sides, and both coaches Anthony Hudson (USA) and Diego Cocca (Mexico) have reason to go for victory alongside the developmental goals for this camp and match.
USA vs Mexico lineups and team news
Interestingly, the USMNT roster has four natural right-backs and only one true left-back in Caleb Wiley. With Sergino Dest almost sure to start on the right, head coach Anthony Hudson will either have to deploy young Wiley or slide someone like Julian Gressel or DeAndre Yedlin over to the left.
Cristian Roldan and Paul Arriola would have both likely started, but injuries saw them withdrawn from the squad. Paxton Pomykal was called up to fill in.
The biggest decision for Mexico head coach Diego Cocca is who to deploy at striker. Cocca kept Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez frozen out of the side, instead calling in a pair of 23-year-olds in Ivan Lopez and Roberto de la Rosa who both play in Liga MX. Neither one is in great goalscoring form.
At the back, new Barcelona prospect Julian Araujo is on the roster and could get time at right-back, while veterans Jesus Gallardo (left-back) and Nestor Araujo (center-back) will likely be entrenched in their roles.
USA projected starting lineup (4-3-3):
Johnson (GK) — Dest, Long, Miazga, Wiley — Acosta, Sands, Sonora — Morris, Ferreira, Cowell.
Mexico projected starting lineup (4-3-3):
Acevedo (GK) — J. Araujo, N. Araujo, Reyes, Gallardo — Chavez, Beltran, C. Rodriguez — Antuna, Lopez, Vega.
