USA vs. Oman, 2023 Friendly: What to watch for

The United States Men’s National Team return to the field tomorrow night when they take on Oman at Allianz Field in St. Paul. The USMNT are coming off a 3-0 victory over Uzbekistan where they didn’t look their best, but had a couple of brilliant moments that were the difference.

The USMNT take on another Asian team that they’ve never faced before in Oman, who almost qualified for the 2022 World Cup. They are a team that many have never seen before, and it’s an opportunity for the USMNT to once again test themselves against a style of play that is unfamiliar to them but they could see in the 2026 World Cup. That makes the match an intriguing one as the Americans close out the September window.

Latest Form

USA

W (3-0) - Uzbekistan - Friendly

D (1-1) - Panama - Concacaf Gold Cup Semifinals**

D (2-2) - Canada - Concacaf Gold Cup Quarterfinal*

W (6-0) - Trinidad & Tobago - Concacaf Gold Cup Group A

W (6-0) - St. Kitts & Nevis - Concacaf Gold Cup Group A

*Advanced on penalties

**Lost on penalties

Oman

W (2-1) - Palestine - Friendly

W (1-0) - Kyrgyzstan - CAFA Nations Cup 3rd Place

W (2-0) - Turkmenistan - CAFA Nations Cup Group A

D (1-1) - Tajikistan - AFA Nations Cup Group A

L (0-3) - Uzbekistan - AFA Nations Cup Group A

What To Watch For

Play for keeps. The midfield should be in charge of the field, keeping possession at a high rate and dictating the flow of the match.

See what happens. The USMNT are sometimes hyper focused on running plays when they could just throw away their worries and play. Sometimes, you gotta see what happens, especially in the attacking half of the field. Send some crosses into the box and see what happens. It’s very certain that something positive can come of that if you continue to find the holes in the Oman defense.

Grow the chemistry. This will be another opportunity for some of the newer players to work their way into the fold, and hopefully Gregg Berhalter gives some of them the chance to do that alongside some of the veterans.

Lineup Prediction

The USMNT will have a couple of changes from their lineup against Uzbekistan, however there is a chance for a lot of it to look very similar:

With Matt Turner leaving the team for the birth of his second child, 2021 Nations League Final hero Ethan Horvath gets the start at goal. Antonee Robinson and Sergiño Dest will operate at the fullback positions, with Mark McKenzie and Chris Richards getting the start at centerback.

In the middle, with Luca de la Torre suffering a broken nose against Uzbekistan, Tanner Tessman gets the start. Weston McKennie and Yunus Musah join him in the midfield, but expect Brenden Aaronson to also get some time.

Up front, Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah once again start on the wings. Ricardo Pepi gets the start at the 9, but Folarin Balogun will also get some time in the second half.

Prediction

The USMNT win 2-0.