USA vs. Guyana: Starting Lineup & Roster for Gold Cup Opener

Getty Head coach Gregg Berhalter of United States shakes hands with Michael Bradley #4 as he checks out of the international friendly against the Panama at State Farm Stadium on January 27, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona.

The USMNT looked to have turned a corner at the beginning of the calendar year. Three wins by a combined six goals over Panama, Costa Rica and Ecuador looked to give new head coach Gregg Berhalter momentum heading into Gold Cup action this week.

However, consecutive embarrassments to Jamaica and Venezuela, the latter by three goals in Cincinnati, have the young team reeling heading into tonight’s tournament opener versus Guyana (10 p.m. EST, FS1). The U.S. currently ranks No. 30 in the world, while the roster has an average age of 25 and a half years.

Berhalter made a minor change to the roster before heading to Allianz Field in Minneapolis, according to USA Soccer.

Five days after the official submission, defender Tyler Adams was forced to withdraw and was replaced by defender Reggie Cannon. On June 15, midfielder Duane Holmes also withdrew and was replaced by Djordje Mihailovic.

Both are relative newcomers, which is something that Berhalter knows he has to get used to with his team.

“I think this is a great process for this group to go through,” he said to MLS.com Monday. “In training today there was a little bit of nerves, because we have the first game, we’ve been building this up. It’s great that we get to experience this together.”

USA vs. Guyana Chances & Predictions

Guyana is a small South American country that that ranks well outside the top-100 in the world, according to Stars and Stripes FC.

Guyana is currently tied with Bermuda at 175 in the FIFA World Rankings and is ranked 166 in the ELO ratings. The Golden Jaguars have played three matches in 2019: a 2-1 win against Belize during the CONCACAF Nations League on March 23, a 1-0 friendly loss to Bermuda on June 6, and a 3-1 friendly loss against Haiti on June 1.

The Americans regularly beat teams such as Haiti and Bermuda, so the fact the Guyanans struggled against them bodes well for tonight. In addition, the visitors really only have one attacker to worry about in Emery Welshman. The Cincinnati FC forward has scored seven goals in nine international appearances.

This is the first meeting between the two clubs. The fact that the U.S. attack will feature new star Christian Pulisic and older ones in Jozy Altidore is probably enough for this to be a comfortable win. The pick here is 4-1.

Projected Starting XI for U.S. Men vs. Guyana

USMNT Roster for Gold Cup

NUMBER PLAYER
1 GK Zach Steffen
2 D Nick Lima
3 D Omar Gonzalez
4 M Michael Bradley
5 D Walker Zimmerman
6 M Wil Trapp
7 F Paul Arriola
8 M Weston McKennie
9 F Gyasi Zardes
10 M Christian Pulisic
11 F Jordan Morris
12 GK Sean Johnson
13 D Tim Ream
15 M Cristian Roldan
16 D Daniel Lovitz
17 F Jozy Altidore
18 F Jonathan Lewis
19 D Matt Miazga
20 M Duane Holmes
21 F Tyler Boyd
22 GK Tyler Miller
23 D Aaron Long
TBD D Reggie Cannon

 

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