In their first of two matches in four days, the USA will host Venezuela in a friendly on Saturday from Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.

The Yanks last played in November, defeating Jamaica 4-2 and advancing from that CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final tie (5-2 on aggregate), while La Vinotinto were beaten 4-2 by Chile in their previous World Cup qualifier.

Match preview

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It is the first January camp for Mauricio Pochettino as US manager, and the former Tottenham and Chelsea boss looks to be focused on seeing what some of the more inexperienced international players could bring to the table.

There are 10 players selected for this window without a single cap for the senior squad, while 23 of the 24 men chosen currently ply their trade in Major League Soccer (MLS).

If history is any indication, those lucky enough to receive the call-up have a big opportunity to earn a place in the senior squad for an upcoming major competition.

Dating back to 1999, 30 players who earned their first or second caps with the US national team during the first camp of a calendar year went on to make a FIFA World Cup roster.

Fort Lauderdale has been good to the USA through the years, with the men's team boasting four wins and a draw in Southeast Florida, including a convincing 6-0 triumph the last time out in a friendly versus El Salvador in 2020.

Pochettino has won three of his four matches at the helm, but the Yanks have not won three consecutive international affairs since claiming nine successive competitive triumphs in 2021, when they capped it off with a CONCACAF Gold Cup title.

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After a successful opening phase at the Copa America last summer, the Venezuelans cooled off down the stretch of 2024.

Fernando Batista's men had a 100% record in the group stage of that tournament, but since their victory over Jamaica (3-0), they have gone winless in seven consecutive matches across all competitions.

Currently, they sit eighth in the CONMEBOL 2026 World Cup qualifying standings with 12 points, five points below Paraguay for an automatic place in the finals and one back of Bolivia for a spot in the inter-confederation playoffs.

They have gone on to lose their last two contests when scoring the opening goal, failing to hang onto two leads in their previous encounter against Chile.

Coming into this contest, La Vinotinto have not lost any of their previous eight matches played against CONCACAF opponents in normal time, but they exited the last Copa America on penalties versus Canada (4-3) after that match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Venezuela are unbeaten in five of their six all-time meetings with the Americans, winning on three occasions, though they lost the previous encounter against them in June 2019 (3-0).

Team News

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Seven US players were called up to the senior squad for the first time this window, including Patrick Agyemang, Indiana Vassilev, Matko Miljevic, Brian Gutierrez, Emeka Eneli, George Campbell and Max Arfsten.

Their most experienced international player selected for these upcoming friendlies is Tim Ream, who has 66 caps, Jesus Ferreira is two away from reaching the quarter-century mark and Zack Steffen is one away from 30.

Benjamin Cremaschi and Drake Callender know Chase Stadium well as they feature for Inter Miami, who play their home games at that venue.

Three players who feature for MLS clubs were chosen to the Venezuelan squad for this match, Daniel Pereira (Austin FC), Ronald Hernandez (Atlanta United) and Javier Otero (Orlando City), with the latter one of 12 players seeking their first caps for the senior team.

On the back end, Roberto Rosales is five appearances away from 100, with Junior Moreno (41 caps) and Wuilker Farinez (40 caps) being their next two most experienced players.

Ruben Ramirez netted his first international goal in their previous encounter against Chile, with the other La Vinotinto strike coming courtesy of former MLS winger Jefferson Savarino, who was not selected for this camp.

USA possible starting lineup:
Callender; Moore, Zimmerman, Ream, Jones; Cremaschi, McGlynn, Luna; Clark, Ferreira, Agyemang

Venezuela possible starting lineup:
Farinez; Hernandez, Ramirez, Vivas, Rosales; Yriarte, Moreno; Gallardo, Gurirapa, Lacava; Hurtado

We say: USA 1-0 Venezuela

Both sides are very inexperienced and unfamiliar with one another, and we do not expect to see much from this encounter besides a training session for each.

That said, there is more dependable quality on the US side, which may be just enough for them to earn a victory this weekend.

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Written by
Joel Lefevre

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