USA vs. Saudi Arabia Preview
USA can put themselves in Group D driver's seat with win
Despite a disastrous pair of friendlies earlier this month and a war of words between Mauricio Pochettino, Christian Pulisic, and the American soccer media, the USMNT was able to get their Gold Cup campaign off to a flying start on Sunday. The crowd in San Jose may have been a paltry 12,610 people but the ones that did show up were treated to a US romp. If the Americans are able to beat Saudi Arabia on Thursday in Austin, then they will be in good shape for a spot in the knockout rounds, which just a week ago, was not looking like the surefire proposition that it has always been.
But perhaps the most impressive thing about the USMNT on Sunday, was that they didn’t play with their food as was so often a habit under Gregg Berhalter. The US came out with a point to prove and they proved it. Malik Tillman opened the scoring in the 16th minute and then notched a second in the 41st minute. Patrick Agyemang added a third just before the halftime whistle, though it must be said that he didn’t know too much about it after Diego Luna did most of the heavy lifting. Not content to just sit back and defend a 3-0 lead, Brenden Aaronson added a fourth before Haji Wright made it five with less than ten minutes to play.
While a win is definitely better than a loss, and winning comprehensively especially so, now is not the time to pretend that all is well. Going into that Trinidad & Tobago game the US had lost four straight, all on home soil, and the team had never appeared more dysfunctional. It also cannot go unmentioned that Trinidad & Tobago is dreadful, ranked in the 100’s of the FIFA ranking. But the win stopped the bleeding and if the US is able to put together two more performances like that, then there might actually be just the tiniest bit of optimism heading into the Gold Cup knockout rounds. Standing in their immediate way is Saudi Arabia.
Herve Renard is something of an international man of mystery. He is currently on his second stint managing Saudi Arabia but has managed a number of other national teams over the years: Zambia (twice), Ivory Coast, Morocco, and most recently France’s women’s team. Most famously he guided Saudi Arabia to an opening game upset win of eventual champions Argentina at the 2022 World Cup. Of all the players on the roster, only four are based at non-Saudi clubs: Saud Abdulhamid of AS Roma in Italy, Muhannad Al-Saad of Dunkerque in France, and the duo of Faisal Al-Ghamdi and Marwan Al-Sahafi of Beerschot in Belgium. Thus far at the Gold Cup, Saudi Arabia has played one game, and one won game, a tense 1-0 affair against Haiti in San Diego
When, Where
Date: Thursday, June 19, 2025
Stadium: Q2 Stadium
City: Austin, TX
Time: 9:15pm ET
TV: FS1
All-Time Series
USA leads 3-2-2
Last Meeting
Date: Tuesday, September 27, 2022
Stadium: Estadio Nueva Condomina
City: Murcia, Spain
Result: USA 0-0 Saudi Arabia
Current FIFA Ranking
USA: 16
Saudi Arabia: 58
Next Game
Date: Sunday, June 22, 2025
Competition: Gold Cup group stage
Match-Up: USA vs. Haiti
Stadium: AT&T Stadium
City: Arlington, TX
Time: 7pm CT
TV: FOX
Photo Credit: Austin American Statesman