The US men’s national team just produced an emphatic, emotional triumph over their old rivals Mexico before an appreciative home crowd in Cincinnati, vaulting past El Tri into possession of first place in the Concacaf Octagonal World Cup qualifying round.
So if you’re thinking that the task of jetting south to a lush Caribbean island and facing the team currently ranked third-from-bottom in the standings four days later qualifies as the proverbial “banana peel,” head coach Gregg Berhalter is already on your same wavelength.
He made sure to drop the hoary old phrase “trap game” into his Monday afternoon media availability as reporters quizzed him on how he and his squad will look to not get ambushed in the warm-and-fuzzy aftermath of Friday’s 2-0 win, explaining that he drove home the point that “Mexico's done, it's in the rearview mirror” during a team meeting on Sunday.
“Something I said to the team before the Mexico game was, ‘yeah, we want to beat Mexico, it's important, but we have bigger things to focus on,’” said Berhalter. “That's a game that's going to get us to our destination, just like Jamaica is a game that's going to get us to the destination. And you have to put just as much energy into both of these games. And for us, our big picture is qualifying for this World Cup, and all Mexico does is put us closer. But the Jamaica game can put us even closer to qualifying. So for us, it's a massive game.”
It’s the fourth time these teams have clashed in 2021, with US victories in all previous three meetings: a 4-1 friendly in Austria back in May, a tight 1-0 Gold Cup quarterfinal result and the Yanks’ 2-0 Octagonal win at Austin FC's Q2 Stadium on Oct. 7.
The Reggae Boyz were shorn of arguably their two most talented players for that last occasion: West Ham striker Michail Antonio and Aston Villa winger Leon Bailey. With the islanders in dire need of a full three points at home, both are expected to feature at the National Stadium in Kingston on Tuesday (5 pm ET | Paramount+, Universo), a substantial injection of talent that has drawn the USMNT’s focus while chasing a Qatar 2022 spot.
“We expect Antonio to be in, and Leon Bailey, and they didn't play against us last time, they didn’t play against us in the Gold Cup either. And it's just preparing for them,” said Berhalter. “Mexico had really high-level attacking quality, so does Jamaica, and we have to be prepared for that. The rest of the team we’re projecting to be pretty similar to what we've been facing. And then it's also a matter of what we can do and how we can pull them apart, how we can get behind them.”
One of the most dangerous attackers in the English Premier League this season, Antonio has scored six goals in 10 West Ham appearances thus far. Born in England, he unsuccessfully sought an international career with the Three Lions before pledging allegiance to Jamaica earlier this year; he opened his Reggae Boyz account during Friday’s 1-1 draw at El Salvador.
“Antonio is a big part of what they do in the attack, a physical presence,” said USMNT center back Walker Zimmerman. “They certainly have a couple of attacking pieces that are able to create. So for us, it's about not letting the last game affect what we're doing this game. And it's another chance for three points, it's a big opportunity for us to continue to climb up in the standings and put ourselves closer to the ultimate goal, which is qualification.”
At the time of the press conference, Zimmerman and his teammates hadn’t yet gotten a firsthand glimpse of “The Office,” Jamaica’s half-century-old home ground in Independence Park, where the playing surface can often be scruffy. A Monday evening visit helped familiarize them, though Tuesday’s match will likely offer just a shadow of the noisy, atmospheric venue’s character, given that government COVID-19 restrictions will limit the crowd to just 5,000 fully vaccinated spectators.
Berhalter revealed that Zack Steffen will remain his starter in goal, though he would not be drawn on whether Christian Pulisic will start or come off the bench as he did to such devastating effect vs. Mexico, calling it “a judgment call.” He did, however, drop a few breadcrumbs as to who will spell the suspended duo of Weston McKennie and Miles Robinson.
“Obviously Miles and Weston are important players for our team. But when we made this roster, the message to the team is that everyone's here to contribute. It's ‘next man up’ mentality,” said Berhalter. “Now either Mark McKenzie or Chris Richards will play at center back, both of them have qualifying experience and either Kellyn \[Acosta\], Gianluca Busio\] or [Sebastian \[Lletget\] will play in midfield. So we have options here with guys that have had World Cup [qualifying] experience.
“There's a positive feeling, but it's not like we're looking backwards,” he said of the vibe around the group after the big rivalry win. “Everyone's getting focused now on the Jamaica game. And we know it's different circumstances, but our job is to bring a similar type of intensity into this game.”
