The US men's national team's 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup campaign marches onward, as the Yanks return to Group A action Wednesday evening against Caribbean island nation St. Kitts and Nevis for the sides' first-ever matchup.
How to watch and stream
- English: FS1
- Spanish: UniMás
When
- Wednesday, June 28 - 9:30 pm ET/6:30 pm PT
Where
- CITYPARK | St. Louis, Missouri
Before Wednesday's encounter at St. Louis CITY SC's downtown venue, the US are tied for second place (Group A) coming off a 1-1 draw against Jamaica in their Gold Cup opener. They're chasing first-place Trinidad and Tobago, who took a 3-0 victory over St. Kitts and Nevis in their opening matchup.
The USMNT will close Group A play on July 2 against Trinidad and Tobago, with the top two teams in each group reaching the knockout phase. All teams are eyeing a spot in the July 16 final at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The United States' Gold Cup venture started in nervy fashion, as a late Brandon Vazquez equalizer was the only thing that saved them from a 1-0 defeat against a much-improved Jamaica side. Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner was also among the heroes, making a crucial save of a penalty kick in the first half that denied the Reggae Boyz a 2-0 advantage.
With the draw salvaged, it creates a scenario where a three-point result is a necessity for interim head coach B.J. Callaghan's group to stay on track to advance to the knockout stage of the competition.
With only five players on the squad that also featured in the USA's victorious Concacaf Nations League run, the door is open for a long list of names to make their case for future call-ups.
St. Kitts and Nevis staked their claim as a program on the rise with a pair of dramatic upsets in the Gold Cup Prelims, knocking off Curaçao and French Guiana, both via penalty-kick shootouts to send the Sugar Boyz to their first-ever Gold Cup.
Head coach Austin Huggins' roster features three players who play in US-based leagues: defender Ezrick Nicholls (University of Tampa), midfielder Raheem Somersall (USL League One's North Carolina FC) and forward Ronaldo Belgrove (USL League Two's FC Miami City). Leading the way in attack will be midfielder Romaine Sawyers and forward Keithroy Freeman, who have each netted six goals apiece.
They'll be heavy underdogs once again in this matchup coming off the three-goal defeat to Trinidad and Tobago (3-0), but they're assuredly fully aware of the type of shockwaves they could send through Concacaf by taking any type of result.
