Jamaica vs USA

Jamaica will play USA on this Friday at Independence Park in the first leg of the CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final match.

The visitors get into this stage by their seeding while the hosts qualified for the knockout stage by finishing at the top of Group B.

Jamaica are next back in action on Friday having reached the last eight of the competition with an unbeaten record in September and October in the CONCACAF Nations League group stage.

The Reggae Boyz under the new management of Steve McClaren eyeing a first slice of continental success finished top of group B accumulating 8 points in the available 12 scoring four goals and concedes two in the four qualifying matches for the first place finish having been held to a draw by Cuba before defeating Honduras 2-1and Nicaragua 2-0.

In the final round of the matches last month, Honduras capitalized on the favorable fixture to achieve a 2-1 victory over the United States, but a final home meeting with the second-placed Honduras in Kingston ended in a stalemate to keep McClaren’s men at the top of their group.

That meant they travel into the latest round of international games under McClaren without an unbeaten record, and Jamaica will now attempt to secure a first win over Friday’s opponents since June 2019 in the first leg of their two-legged tie.

Their visitors come to the Independence Park expecting to maintain that record of five years without defeating the Reggae Boyz which has come to seven games in total, out of which they have emerged victorious in five encounters.

However, USA last played Jamaica in the last CONCACAF Nations League in March and edged passed them in the semis via a 3-1 win, thanks to an own goal from Jamaica’s Cory Burke to level the game before Haji Wright sealed it in the extra thirty minutes.

With goals from Tyler Adams and Giovanni Reyna, the Stars and Stripes defeated Mexico 2-0 in the subsequent final, winning the Nations League title for the third time.

The USMNT then turned to Mauricio Pochettino in September after a poor Copa America performance in June and July. The former Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, and Paris Saint-Germain manager had a mixed start in two friendlies, leading them to a 2-0 victory over Panama last month before losing to Mexico by the same score.

As they begin their first competitive match under the new management, the USA will look to build on their strong record against Jamaica and grab the lead going into the home leg next week in an attempt to advance to the CONCACAF Nations League final four once more.

With Michail Antonio of West Ham United expected to lead the line once more in a 4-2-3-1 formation, Steve McClaren should start a Jamaican lineup that is similar to the one that played in their last group match against Honduras last month, which ended in a goalless draw.

Joel Latibeaudiere may once more join Kasey Palmer in the engine room, while Bobby De Cordova-Reid should start in support, most likely joining Tyreek Magee and Demarai Gray.