The U.S Men’s National Team will continue their road to the 2018 World Cup on Thursday night, when they host Trinidad and Tobago at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Denver, Colorado. This match comes before the looming match on Sunday night against Mexico at Estadio Azteca. The U.S is hoping to get a win on home soil before they travel to face their southern neighbors.
In training this week, U.S team captain Michael Bradley stressed that the United States cannot overlook Trinidad and Tobago. Currently, they sit at the bottom of the Hex with only one win and three losses in their four games played. But the U.S knows they cannot settle for anything less than a win.
“We’ve stressed for 10 days that the focus has to be Trinidad,” Bradley said. “They’re a good team. They’re dangerous in their own ways. We are not in any way looking past tomorrow night.”
The Trinidad and Tobago squad features four MLS players: Kenwyne Jones (Atlanta United), Joevin Jones (Seattle Sounders), Mekeil Williams (Colorado Rapids), and Kevin Molino (Minnesota United). Molino has been in particularly strong form for Minnesota, scoring five goals and earning three assists so far this season. Joevin Jones has also had a strong showing for the Sounders, although his role in the Trinidad and Tobago team, where he plays as a midfielder rather than a defender, is a bit different. Both Williams and Kenwyne Jones have received inconsistent starts with their MLS squads, although Kenwyne Jones has found the back of the net twice so far this year.
Head Coach Bruce Arena wants to see more out of his team than he did last Thursday, when they hosted Venezuela at Rio Tinto Stadium for a friendly that ended in a 1-1 draw. The U.S currently sits in fourth place on the table-- tied for points with fifth place Honduras and just one point ahead of Trinidad and Tobago. The top three in the table will get an automatic slot in the 2018 World Cup and the fourth place finisher will play in an inter-confederation playoff match.
The match against Trinidad and Tobago will kickoff at 8:00pm ET on Fox Sports 1.
