Sebastian and Herculez debate if Berhalter will save his best USMNT XI for Panama. There is a time and a place for it.
The coach of the United States wasn't willing to reveal any details about the starting XI he'll use in Thursday's World Cup match against Mexico.
He said that they want to win all three games in this window.
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Berhalter didn't dismiss the idea that the team could field a squad with the goal of staying fresh for Sunday's crucial game against fourth-place Panama. He acknowledged that his staff debated the merits of the idea.
He said that it was important for them to do it. There is no reason to look at both sides of this thing.
The United States has never won a match at the Azteca in World Cup qualification.
Our record here is terrible. The odds are against us. We know that. We are focused on going in and being difficult to play against.
| GP | PTS | GD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - Canada | 11 | 25 | +14 |
| 2 - USA | 11 | 21 | +9 |
| 3 - Mexico | 11 | 21 | +6 |
| 4 - Panama | 11 | 17 | +1 |
| 5 - Costa Rica | 11 | 16 | 1 |
| 6 - El Salvador | 11 | 9 | -7 |
| 7 - Jamaica | 11 | 7 | -7 |
| 8 - Honduras | 11 | 3 | -17 |
| 1-3 qualify; 4 into playoff |
The Americans will be content not to chase three points.
He said it would mean everything to win at the Azteca. We have the better of them in the last couple of games, but nothing will change tomorrow. We need to battle, we need another top performance, and we need to keep doing the things that we have been doing against them.
We need an amazing performance to win tomorrow.
The United States and Mexico are tied with 21 points, behind first-place Canada. In the first meeting between the rivals, the U.S. won 2-0 for its third straight victory in the series.
The U.S. will travel to Costa Rica after the Panama game.
The top three teams in the region will get an automatic place at the World Cup, with the fourth-place team needing to beat the OCEANIA champion in a one-match playoff in June.
Berhalter said he had left his staff no doubt as to what was at stake over the next three games, as the U.S. seeks to avoid the disaster of missing out on a second straight World Cup.
This is probably the biggest week of our lives as professional coaches, he said. This is bigger than anything I have ever done, I have coached an MLS final and stuff like that.
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