USA vs. Mexico preview: North America rivals meet in Hex opener

The final round of World Cup qualifying is set to begin with a bang with USA against Mexico, one of the biggest rivalries in this hemisphere.

Every game between these two nations is gripping and intense. But with a good start to the final qualifying round at stake, this should be even better than previous meetings. It’s an over-capacity crowd. It’s the bold eagle against the golden eagle. It’s USA vs. Mexico.

The US roster was released on Sunday afternoon and it’s strong, though it is missing Clint Dempsey who is out with a heart issue. US Head Coach Jurgen Klinsmann said that for these next two qualifiers Tim Howard will be the number one goalkeeper, with Brad Guzan as the backup. Across the backline most of the veterans are there, with the exception of Geoff Cameron who is nursing a knee injury. But Fabian Johnson, DeAndre Yedlin, Matt Besler, Omar Gonzalez and John Brooks are all very capable defenders. An interesting first call up is Cameron Carter-Vickers who plies his trade with Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League and is just 18 years old. In the midfield Michael Bradley is back along with Alejandro Bedoya, Jermaine Jones, Graham Zusi and youngsters Christian Pulisic and Julian Green, the latter of the two having played very well in the US’ two October friendlies. On the frontline, Jozy Altidore is back in form again racking up goals like crazy in MLS, along with Bobby Wood (there was some discussion whether Wood would be in the squad as he is serving a three game suspension with Hamburg for violent conduct in a Bundesliga game). Aron Johannsson makes his return to the US squad after missing an extended time with a variety of injuries.

It’s been a good 2016 so far for the US Men’s National Team with a run to the Copa America semifinals plus a strong finish to the semi-final round of World Cup Qualifying. Good results in two tough qualifiers would be a great way to close out the year. It would be a far cry from the way 2015 went, where the US failed to make it to the final of the Gold Cup, the U-23 MNT failed to automatically qualify for the Rio Olympics and the full team lost to Mexico in the CONCACAF Cup, costing themselves a berth in the 2017 Confederations Cup.

Mexico has been something of a mixed bag in 2016. The year started off fantastically but it all went horribly wrong in the quarterfinals of the Copa America where they were humiliated 7-0 by Chile. That is their only loss this year however and they finished top of their group in the previous round of qualifying. Mexico’s roster was released last week and is loaded. They have a pair of very capable goalkeepers with Guillermo Ochoa and Jose de Jesus Corona. The backline consists of Miguel Layun, Hector Moreno and the ageless wonder Rafa Marquez. In the midfield, Andres Guardado, Giovani and Jonathan dos Santos along with Marco Fabian can cause problems for any opposing team. And up front, Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, Oribe Peralta and Carlos Vela are all lethal in front of goal.

Notes:

• Mexico has only one player on their roster playing in MLS while the US has three players on their roster playing in Mexico.

• Michael Bradley leads all active US players in goals scored against Mexico with four.

• This is the fifth meeting between the US and Mexico in Columbus.

TV/streaming availability:

Friday, November 11, 2016
Mapfre Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
Ticket availability
8:01pm ET kickoff time
Live on FOX Sports 1, Univision, Univision Deportes, FOX Soccer 2GO, fuboTV and Sling Blue (free trial)

All-time series:

USA trails 19-34-14

Last match between both teams:

October 10, 2015
Rose Bowl
Pasadena, CA
Mexico 3-2 USA (after extra time)

Current FIFA ranking:

USA: 24
Mexico: 17