It may not be the most eventful way to follow up a thrilling Concacaf Nations League final win, but the U.S. men’s national team’s friendly with Costa Rica was planned with bigger things in mind.
Following a friendly against Switzerland, a trans-Atlantic flight and two high-pressure Nations League matches against Honduras and Mexico, the Costa Rica friendly is meant to simulate a compact World Cup qualifying schedule with four games in 11 days (a club game overseas, followed by a three-game window in this region).
The friendly in Sandy, Utah, is also thought to be the final look at the full USMNT squad before World Cup qualifying in the fall with manager Gregg Berhalter expected to name a side much less dependent on European-based players for this summer’s Gold Cup.
How to Watch:
Time: 7 p.m. ET
TV Channel: ESPN2, UniMás, TUDN
Live Stream: You can stream the match on fuboTV. Sign up now for a free seven-day trial.
The USMNT was crowned winner of the inaugural Concacaf Nations League in dramatic fashion on Sunday with a 3-2 extra-time victory over rival Mexico. After falling behind El Tri twice, including in the second minute of the match, the U.S. showed its resolve with equalizers from Gio Reyna and Weston McKennie.
But it was the drama at the penalty spot in extra time that will be seared into USMNT fans’ memories. Christian Pulisic drew a penalty and scored the eventual winner from the spot in the 114th minute before substitute goalkeeper Ethan Horvath’s penalty save in the 124th minute kicked off the USMNT’s jubilant title celebration.
Costa Rica comes into the friendly having lost to penalty shootouts to both Mexico in the Nations League semifinals and Honduras in the third-place match.
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