SOCCER : U.S. Will Continue to Seek Right Mix Against Russia

Bora Milutinovic, coach of the U.S. soccer team, is still trying to fashion a cohesive team from the raw material that has won one game and tied two this year.

As he did against FC Zurich last Tuesday, Milutinovic will experiment to find the right combinations when the U.S. team plays Russia in the Citrus Bowl at Orlando, Fla., today.

Because Tuesday’s match was against a club team and doesn’t count against the U.S. record in full international matches, Milutinovic used the game to get a look at seldom-used players and to play others in new positions. The experiment yielded results--Chris Henderson and Cobi Jones each scored goals, and Joe-Max Moore assisted on both. The United States won, 2-1.

Today, there will be a full international match, but Milutinovic will continue juggling players and positions. Henderson will start at center forward and veteran Peter Vermes will take Henderson’s position on the left wing. Desmond Armstrong, a defender, will start in the midfield quarterback position; Brian Quinn is still recovering from an ankle injury and did not make the trip.

Milutinovic will get a look at two players recalled from European leagues--Frank Klopas, who is playing in Greece, and Peter Woodring, who is playing in the German Bundesliga.

Klopas has not played with the national team since 1991, and then in only one game. He has five goals in 19 international matches. Woodring’s rise has been a surprise. He attended California, where his play was solid but not outstanding. A midfielder, he was bypassed by the various American soccer leagues and made his way to Germany, where he signed an amateur contract last year with SV Hamburg.

Tony Meola is expected to start in goal. Brad Friedel will start next week, when the U.S. team plays the Russians again, at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Feb. 21.

The Russians have not played a match in 1993 but are 2-0 in World Cup qualifying and second in their group. If this team is similar in style to past Russian teams, its play will be characterized by ball-control offense with players who are not creative, but quick off the ball. Similar, in other words, to the U.S. team.

After two ties, the U.S. team celebrated Tuesday night’s victory as if it were a World Cup match.

“We need to get into a winning attitude,” Vermes said.