Ahead of facing Colombia, U.S. men’s national team manager Gregg Berhalter has named his starting XI, and while most of the names were predictable, Johnny Cardoso is in for Tyler Adams while Joe Scally gets a chance at replacing Sergino Dest. In the lead-up to the match, Berhalter did say that his natural right backs would get a chance but Scally will need to put in a good shift facing off with Luis Diaz as he was wobbly in his last start against Jamaica during Concacaf Nations League and was withdrawn at the half.
Adams has been brought along slowly as he dealt with a back injury to close the season for Bournemouth and Cardoso also had a strong half-season for Real Betis after joining the club in January. A strong passer, Cardoso can bring more range to the USMNT midfield which will be needed to break down Colombia’s organized defense.
Another change from Berhalter is that Yunus Musah will also begin the match on the bench as Gio Reyna starts in midfield. Both players struggled for minutes to end the season but with Reyna in the XI, the USMNT can play a more direct style to try and force Colombia into mistakes. This is the first look into how Berhalter may look to line up during Copa America but it will be dependent on how the performance goes as Scally, Reyna and Cardoso are being handed big opportunities.
Lineup
USMNT XI: Matt Turner; Joe Scally, Chris Richards, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson; Johnny Cardoso, Weston McKennie, Gio Reyna; Tim Weah, Folarin Balogun, Christian Pulisic.
