U.S. going into World Cup qualifier without best midfielders
No Landon Donovan? No Michael Bradley?
No problem, U.S. national team Coach Juergen Klinsmann said heading into Friday night’s World Cup qualifying game against Jamaica in Kingston.
“It’s something that is normal. There will never be a game where you have everybody at 100%,” said Klinsmann, who, in addition to being without his two best midfielders, may also be limited in how much he can use forward Clint Dempsey, who hasn’t played a competitive soccer game in three months. “You always have to deal with injuries, maybe some players being not on form.”
But it may be a bit abnormal to deal with such a wave of injuries in the semifinal round of World Cup qualifying. After two of six games the U.S. and Jamaica, with a win and a draw each, head into Friday’s match as the only unbeaten teams in their four-country group, which makes their home-and-home series over the next five days crucial. The teams meet again Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio, and should either team manage four points from the two games, it would be well-positioned to advance to next year’s final round of regional play.
The U.S. has lost just one of nine matches this year and is coming off a historic win last month over Mexico in a friendly at Azteca Stadium. It has never won a World Cup qualifier in Jamaica, though, playing to a draw in all four previous tries. And it hasn’t played a competitive match without both Donovan and Bradley in more than three years.
That may not be an insurmountable loss, however, especially if Dempsey, who has looked good in training, can play. Jamaica, whose roster is chock-full of Major League Soccer veterans, is vulnerable on the back line, but its superior speed, especially in the midfield, could be a problem for the U.S. However, Klinsmann’s team — with 20 players culled from leagues outside the U.S. — is more physical and far more experienced.
“We’ll try to juggle things as well as we can,” Klinsmann said. “We’ve got a very good group and we know we have to give everything we have in order to beat Jamaica.”
