The U.S. men’s national team’s September schedule is now official with a pair of Asian Football Confederation opponents making the trip to the United States.
Uzbekistan and Oman will face off with the United States this September for friendlies on Sept. 9 and 12 respectively, U.S. Soccer announced Thursday. St. Louis CITY SC’s CITYPARK and Minnesota United’s Allianz Field will serve as host venues for the friendly matches.
“We are very intentional and committed to presenting different challenges to our team during the next three years as we continue to develop the program,” USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter said.
“Uzbekistan and Oman are first-time opponents for us and both are preparing for the AFC Asian Cup, so we expect them to be good tests. We look forward to visiting two excellent soccer facilities and performing in front of the fantastic supporters in St. Louis and the Twin Cities.”
Uzbekistan is currently ranked No. 74 in the FIFA Men’s Rankings while Oman is ranked No. 73. Both national teams are part of the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and would face off with the Americans for the first times in their histories.
Both Uzbekistan and Oman have yet to make a FIFA World Cup, but are regular participants in the Asian Cup every four years. Uzbekistan’s finished fourth at the Asian Cup in 2011 while Oman reached the Round of 16 for the first time in 2019.
Uzbekistan is led by all-time leading goalscorer Eldor Shomurodov, who has 37 goals in 66 international caps. Khalid Al-Hajri leads all current Oman players with 18 goals in 45 caps.
The USMNT already has its October window sealed with Germany and Ghana opposing the Americans on Oct. 14 and 17 respectively.
Source: SBI