USMNT v Chile Match Preview

The USA continues to show well under new coach Gregg Berhalter, who after three games has yet to lose or concede a goal. With only one friendly left before this summer’s Gold Cup the new coach will have one last chance to solidify his roster and tactics against CONMEBOL’s defending Copa America champions, Chile.

We are breaking down what you need to know for this match.

When: Tuesday, March 26th at 5:55pm MT

Where: BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas

How to watch: ESPN2, UniMás or UDN

Why this one matters: The US has found new life and new momentum since the dark days of Bruce Arena bombing out of CONCACAF qualifying and interim coach Dave Sarachan trying to keep the ship afloat. With new coach Gregg Berhalter the US has yet to lose or even concede a goal after 3 matches. The USSF couldn’t have scripted a better start and it will prove very valuable to recapturing some of the average fans who were jaded by the US men’s team’s epic collapse in 2017. We would hate to see that momentum stalled by a loss to Chile right before June’s Gold Cup. For the sake of player development and fan engagement, the US will want to head into the Gold Cup undefeated under Berhalter.

Also worth noting is that with a deeper lineup than January’s camp, Corey Baird did not see the field against Ecuador last week with the US winning off of bizarre goal from Gyasi Zardes. This might be Bairds last chance to push himself into the lineup and hopefully into the roster that participates in the Gold Cup. There is plenty of talent in front of him but Corey is a grinder who’s work rate has seen him earn minutes time and time again.

Things to know about Chile: Chile also failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup despite having plenty of talent at their disposal. They are however still every bit as deadly and are the current defending CONMEBOL Copa America champs. The US and Chile first met in 1950 in the FIFA World Cup that was played in Brazil. The teams have gone on to face each other a total of 10 times across all competitions with Chile Enjoying a 5-3-2 advantage (W-L-D).

Our predictions:

Chile is a strong footballing federation with a lot of history and success. They lost to Mexico over the weekend in embarrassing 3-1 fashion and will look to right the ship against the US. I predict a 2-0 win for Chile in this one.