The top two teams from Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers will face off in Hamilton, Ontario, as the USA Men’s National Team take on the Canadian National Team in freezing temperatures. Sunday’s kickoff is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. ET and coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. ET on Paramount+ with Kate Abdo anchoring the pre-game show alongside analysts Clint Dempsey, Oguchi Onyewu and Charlie Davies. On site in Canada, Andres Cordero and Maurice Edu will be on call alongside Kaylyn Kyle and Jenny Chiu, who will be on the sidelines.
Both teams have been in great form lately with just one point separating them in the standings as Canada leads the group with 19 points — one point ahead of the United States — with five games remaining. With a little help, either of these teams can clinch their ticket to the World Cup in Qatar in this three-game window, but it all starts with a win here.
USA coach Gregg Berhalter will have to manage without Tim Weah for this game as he was unable to cross the border and travel to Canada due to vaccination reasons. Berhalter told reporters at Saturday’s pregame press conference that Weah received a dose of the vaccine and then contracted COVID before he was scheduled for his second shot. Since recovering, Weah is considered fully vaccinated by French standards, but does not meet the vaccination requirements of the Canadian government, which Berhalter said the USSF only learned of the problem on Thursday. Weah will be available for the third and final game of this international window against Honduras in St. Paul, Minnesota on Tuesday, but he will not be able to face Lille teammate Jonathan David in Canada.
Weah missing this game is a slight blow as he created several chances despite being isolated in a few cases. That said, Berhalter has depth on the wing he can look to against Canada. Considering John Herdman plays the Habs a flexible style that adapts to their opposition, it would make a lot of sense for Brenden Aaronson to replace Jordan Morris. Aaronson can play on the wing or as a true No.10, giving Christian Pulisic a freer role in which to operate. Pulisic’s dead ball delivery was also disappointing against El Salvador and Aaronson also provides an upgrade in those situations.
Miles Robinson will also likely return to the lineup, providing a more composed presence than Chris Richards. Robinson and Walker Zimmerman are America’s best pair and they’ll have to be on their game to keep David from scoring at will. David and Cyle Larin combined to score 19 goals for Canada in the World Cup qualifiers – including eight in the last qualifying round – and will be ready to lead the line in the absence of Alphonso Davies for the game .
Ricardo Pepi replacing Jesus Ferreira is the third likely roster change to be expected. Pepi’s movement and ability in the air will provide something different compared to Ferreira, as he also moves through space to open up avenues for other American attackers. Brooks Lennon returned to Atlanta with an ankle injury, but with DeAndre Yedlin now aware after his late arrival from Turkey, he would need dire circumstances to feature with the national team during this window.
The United States will rely on experience in this game, which the main team members did not have earlier in World Cup qualifying. All eyes will be on Pulisic to see if he improves, but any success in Canada will come on the spine of Matt Turner, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Zimmerman.
