USMNT weekend viewing guide: Seasons are slowly starting

We’re in the dog days of summer, a number of teams are still out on their preseason tours abroad, and the MLS regular season is about to enter the final quarter. On top of all that, European leagues are starting to return back. This weekend, we’ll be keeping an eye on Germany, where round one of the DFB-Pokal kicks off including matches Friday and Sunday on ESPN+ that could feature Americans in action. Let’s start with Friday’s match:

Friday

TSV 1860 Munich v Borussia Dortmund - 2:45p on ESPN+

It seems that Giovanni Reyna continues his long and cautious injury recovery for Borussia Dortmund, as he has yet to appear in match action this preseason and reports indicate he did not travel to Munich, where his team will begin their DFB-Pokal campaign against 3. Bundesliga side 1860 Munich. BVB are looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2021-22 campaign, where they finished a distant second to Bayern Munich. The result wasn’t good enough for the team leadership, who fired manager Marco Rose at the end of the season and returned the reigns to former interim manager Edin Terzic. In addition to a new manager, the team will also need to adjust to the loss of Erling Haaland, who was sold to Manchester City over the summer.

Other notes:

• Kellyn Acosta and LAFC will host the Seattle Sounders at 11p on FS1 Friday night. Gareth Bale, who the USMNT will face in their World Cup opener in November, scored his first MLS goal last weekend in LA’s 2-0 win over Sporting Kansas City. Meanwhile, Jordan Morris scored for Seattle as the team played down a man for half the match but still managed to break a three game losing streak as they defeated the Colorado Rapids 2-1.

Saturday

Nashville SC v Vancouver Whitecaps- 8p on ESPN+

Walker Zimmerman and Nashville host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday evening. Zimmerman looks to be a frontrunner for one of the USMNT centerback spots in Qatar, and his club has one of the better goals against averages in the league, though they have just a handful of clean sheets through their 22 matches played. Nashville currently sit in sixth place in the Western Conference and face 10th place Vancouver this weekend, who are coming off a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Fire and haven’t won a match since a July 2 win over LAFC.

Other notes:

• Minnesota United take on the Portland Timbers at 3p on ABC, but this one is pretty lacking from a USMNT perspective unless you long for the bygone days of the Wil Trapp era.

MLS Mashup (all matches on ESPN+):

• Gaga Slonina and the Chicago Fire take on Atlanta United at 5p. Atlanta has really struggled with injuries this year, but 17-year-old Caleb Wiley has ten starts already this season.
• Charlotte FC host Aidan Morris and the Columbus Crew at 7p. The Crew are coming off a 2-0 win over FC Cincinnati and are undefeated when Morris plays.
• Djordje Mihailovic has returned from injury with his first start since May in Sunday’s 2-1 win over DC United. CF Montreal will host Eastern Conference-leading NYCFC at 7:30p.
• The Philadelphia Union’s quartet of young guns have been getting consistent play since returning from USMNT U-20 play. The Union host the Houston Dynamo at 7:30p.
• Deandre Yedlin and Inter Miami take on FC Cincinnati at 8p.
• The New England Revolution take on Toronto FC in a battle of old coaches (Bruce Arena and Bob Bradley) and old players (Sebastian Lletget and Michael Bradley) at 8p.
• Sporting Kansas City and Peter Vermes host surprising Austin FC, who currently sit second in the Western Conference. This match will be played at 8:30p.
• Jesus Ferreira and FC Dallas host the LA Galaxy at 9p. The two teams are in fifth and seventh place but separated by just two points.
• The evening capper sees U-20 teammates face off as Cade Cowell and the San Jose Earthquakes take on Diego Luna and Real Salt Lake at 10p.

Sunday

SV Oberachern v Borussia Mönchengladbach - 9:30a on ESPN+

Joe Scally will look to reassert himself this season under a new head coach, Daniel Farke, who will reportedly be running a new system that will see Scally needing to adjust to playing a more traditional right back (or left back) role rather than being slotted in at a wingback position. ‘Gladbach will start their 2022-23 campaign in the DFB-Pokal against SV Oberachern, who play in the regional league Oberliga Baden-Wurttemberg, the fifth tier in the German Bundesliga setup.

MLS Mashup (all matches on ESPN+):

• DC United host Orlando City at 5p Sunday afternoon. DC will be looking for their first win in six matches and could be looking for it under a new manager, some fella named Wayne Rooney who’s coming in from abroad.