There’s been a lot of talk — A LOT — about how the USMNT is going to play three World Cup qualifiers in frigid temperatures this international break. Almost every post the @USMNT Twitter account has made this week has highlighted the fact it gets kinda cold in the northern parts of the U.S. in the winter.
Built for the elements. ❄️ pic.twitter.com/vvVJyO3QBY
It is, we're learning, a question that can be framed in countless ways — "Will it be an advantage? But will it really be an advantage? How will you prepare? How will you mentally prepare? Will you put hot chicken broth in your water bottle so it doesn't freeze?" — but really only ever has one definitive plan of action: Deal with it.
The Yunus Musah goal vs Atlético Madrid on Saturday was the 19-year-old’s first LaLiga goal of the season and the second of his career. Musah was given the start against the Spanish giants and silenced the Estadio Wanda Metropolitano when he opened the scoring in the 25th minute.
Yunus Musah gives Valencia the lead over Atletico!
That's his first LaLiga goal since November 2020. pic.twitter.com/Dyi2LhSPFB
USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter released the latest national-team roster that has, as always, caused controversy. Before we get into the roster, let’s see who Berhalter thinks has what it takes to qualify the USMNT for Qatar.
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The number of USMNT winter transfers to Europe continues to grow by the day. With Major League Soccer not beginning until Feb. 26, some of the brighter stars are skipping out on next season with their respective MLS clubs and looking for minutes in Europe.
There was a bizarre Ricardo Pepi quote making the rounds in Germany this week. Thankfully, the fine folks at FC Augsburg were kind enough to dispel it as fake. But we still have so, so many questions.
The U.S. men’s national team has a striker problem. Players like Ricardo Pepi, Jordan Pefok, Gyasi Zardes and Daryl Dike have all attempted to fill the No. 9 vacancy on the team with mixed results. The team has been searching for an answer, but little did they know the solution has been one step away from the field this whole time.
Gregg Berhalter needs a go at striker. Don’t believe me? Check out this video from the USMNT’s Arizona training camp and try telling me that Mr. Nike Shirt couldn’t score a goal for this team.
Comoros, making its first-ever Africa Cup of Nations appearance, has knocked out four-time champion and enemy of the USMNT Ghana after scoring its first three goals in tournament history during an insane 3-2 victory.
Watching Ricardo Pepi make his first Augsburg start on Sunday against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, I realized that either Pepi's performance was exactly the same as the debuts of Clint Dempsey with Fulham, Christian Pulisic with Borussia Dortmund and Tyler Adams with Leipzig or that I have a tendency to see exactly what I want to see when hugely talented Americans finally grace the field in Europe.
The Canadian national team became notorious for its home-field advantage in World Cup qualifying after hosting Costa Rica and Mexico in the frigid cold of Edmonton. The Canada vs USA location for January’s qualifying game will once again have freezing temperatures as the Canucks host the Americans in Hamilton, Ontario.
Date: Jan. 30
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