So World Cup qualifying in the CONCACAF region has finished and the three teams going to South Africa are: USA, Mexico, and Honduras.  By finishing in forth place, Costa Rica could still qualify for the World Cup.  In order to do so, they must win a home and away series against Uruguay.  To date, 23 teams out of 32 have qualified for the tournament.  The home and away playoff series will determine who fills these final nine spots.

Having already qualified, USA can look ahead to preparing for the big tournament.  In the coming weeks, USA will play a series of exhibitions (“friendlies”) in order to fine-tune their final squad for South Africa.  On November 14^th, USA will be traveling to Bratislava, Slovakia to play against the Slovakian National Team.  Then, four days later, USA will be traveling to Aarhus, Denmark to play the Danish National Team.  Why do this?  Well these friendlies give the team an opportunity to look at which players work well together, as well as which players could be a boost off the bench should a potential injury happen before or during the World Cup.

Another reason for these friendlies, in particular, is that playing against a decent team on the road will help the USA team build some “road character.”  The World Cup, being in South Africa, means no home games for USA at a neutral venue.  Playing on the road will help the starters develop more confidence while on the road, thus building a stronger team.

Even though the World Cup is more than seven months away, it is the preparations being made now that will help build the team’s confidence and increase the chances of a good showing in 2010.

Author: Joel Beebe