The U.S. men's national team faces off against Jamaica at CITYPARK in St. Louis, Missouri in the second leg of the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals.
USA leads 1–0 on aggregate coming into the tie after Ricardo Pepi scored the only goal in the fifth minute last week in Kingston. Jamaica had a golden opportunity to equalize right away if not for Matt Turner's heroic save. Christian Pulisic was the star of the show last time out in a free roaming role trying to link play together and provide quality in the final third.
Mauricio Pochettino was forced into an early change in the 20th minute when Johnny Cardoso came off injured. Malik Tillman finished the game and looks to be in line for a start.
Here's how the USMNT could line up against Jamaica in the second leg.
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USMNT Predicted Lineup vs. Jamaica (4-2-3-1)
GK: Matt Turner—Opinions of Turner could've been much different if he didn't save Demarai Gray's penalty after fouling Shamar Nicholson. He's the first-choice keeper, without a doubt, but fans want to see him more commanding of his penalty area with cleaner distribution.
LB: Antonee Robinson—Robinson wasn't as dynamic against Jamaica as he has been for Fulham in recent weeks. Fans know how talented the player is, and they'll want to see more of that on display in Missouri.
CB: Tim Ream—The 37-year-old gets the nod once again after keeping a clean sheet.
CB: Mark McKenzie—McKenzie partners Ream centrally in an unchanged defense.
RB: Joe Scally—Scally is the obvious option to complete the back line. He's been serviceable replacing Sergino Dest, but his intensity was an important factor in the first leg.
CDM: Tanner Tessmann—Pochettino handed the Lyon midfielder his first senior start last time out and was solid. There are areas he needs to improve, but more minutes will go a long way toward building up one of the young talents in the squad.
CDM: Malik Tillman—Tillman was solid off the bench replacing the injured Cardoso. He pairs Tessmann once again.
LW: Christian Pulisic—USA's talisman is the first name on the team sheet. He starts once again on the left, but it'll be interesting to see if he's given license to roam as much as he did in the first leg.
CAM: Weston McKennie—McKennie wasn't great in the first leg as the most advanced midfielder. He'll need to be more active in linking play and creating opportunities.
RW: Tim Weah—Pochettino said Weah will play after serving his suspension for a red card in Copa America. The Juventus winger will bring some dynamism to the right flank that was largely quiet in the first leg.
ST: Ricardo Pepi—The PSV striker gets the nod once again after scoring last time out. Pepi has a big opportunity to make the striker position his with Folarin Balogun recovering from injury.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as USMNT Predicted Lineup vs. Jamaica: Concacaf Nations League QF Second Leg.
