Report: US men's national team eyes November friendlies with Europe-based camp

Gregg Berhalter - USMNT - close up

UPDATE (10/22): Football Federation Australia has shelved plans for its men's and women's teams to hold camps in Europe during the November FIFA window, effectively putting the kibosh on a friendly between the US men's national team and the Socceroos that was reportedly in the works for next month.


However, Yahoo! Sports' Doug McIntyre reports that the USMNT's other reported friendly in the November window, against Wales, is still set to be announced soon, and that the U.S. Soccer Federation is still trying to schedule a second opponent:



UPDATE: (10/12): In addition to Wales, the US men’s national team will also face Australia in the November international window, USMNT fullback Sergino Dest said Monday, per the Washington Post's Steven Goff.

Goff also noted that U.S. Soccer has said nothing is finalized for November, but the plan is for the USMNT to play two games in the UK during November, likely just with European-based players. The Australia match will reportedly take place at Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham FC, who currently feature US internationals Tim Ream and Antonee Robinson in their squad.




ORIGINAL (10/7): The US men’s national team is poised to gather for the first time since a Feb. 1 friendly against Costa Rica, according to Steven Goff of The Washington Post.


Goff reports that the USMNT is angling to host a European-based camp during the November international window, which would reunite head coach Gregg Berhalter with his players after a nine-month hiatus that’s been elongated by the COVID-19 pandemic.


Goff adds that they’d play friendlies against Wales and a to-be-named opponent in the United Kingdom. The USMNT was slated to play Wales and the Netherlands in friendlies this past March, but the global health situation resulted in both matches being cancelled.

A camp with European-based players would resemble nearly the entire “A” team that Berhalter can pick from. Some highlights are goalkeeper Zack Steffen (Manchester City), outside back Sergino Dest (Barcelona) winger Christian Pulisic (Chelsea) and midfielders Tyler Adams (RB Leipzig) and Weston McKennie (Juventus). They’re now making consistent impacts at some of Europe’s biggest clubs, while the likes of defender Chris Richards (Bayern Munich) and attacking midfielder Giovanni Reyna (Borussia Dortmund) could also earn their first senior-team caps.


It’s likely that MLS-based players wouldn’t feature in this European camp, both because of timing and travel/quarantine concerns amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s Decision Day presented by AT&T is slated for Nov. 8, and the 18-team Audi MLS Cup Playoff field is expected to get underway in mid-November.