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Report: USA to face Venezuela in January

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Photo by Bernd Feil/ISIphotos.com

The U.S. men's national team's January camp appears to be culminating with two matches close to the Equator. 

According to numerous reports, Venezuela will host the U.S. national team in a friendly on January 21. The prospective match comes days before another reported friendly, which pits the United States against Panama in Panama City on January 25. 

If the two dates hold up, it would end a six-year stretch in which the United States has ended its January camp with a friendly at the Home Depot Center. Neither fixture has been officially confirmed yet by U.S. Soccer.

Venezuela has been one of the surprise, rising teams in South America over the last year, coming in fourth in this past summer's Copa America. La Vinotinto is currently tied for first in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying along with Uruguay and Argentina and managed to defeat Lionel Messi & Co. in a qualifier last month.

What do you think of this development? Do you like the opponent choices?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. I can’t pretend to understand all of Klinsmann’s roster selections, but bringing in Donovan, Beckerman, Goodson, Shea, Agudelo and Rimando would provide the highest level of experience possible on a non-Fifa date. Plus, there would be plenty of roster space to evaluate fringe players.

    I would also expect to see Robbie Rogers again, but think Duka and Gaven deserve looks first, IMO.

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  2. Wow the level of ignorance here is hilarious. Venezuela is not a communist country and has democratic elections. Plus there are players like Giancarlo Maldonado that turned down the chance to play for Uruguay to play for Venezuela. Also, there are a few players that play for Venezuela that have lived for years in the US like Alejandro Moreno. People on here can be incredibly, incredibly stupid.

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  3. Good matches for the young MLS & Scandanavian players. I personally think we’re likely to see the U-23 team with a handful of 1st teamers/fringe guys. Id like to see at least some of the following…
    Keepers: Johnson, Hamid, Rimando, Unkown. Defenders: Gonzalez, John, Ream, Loyd, Williams, Alston, Franklin, DeLaGarza. Midfield: Adu, Zusi, Okugo, Mixx, Donovan, Shea, Gatt, Corona, Duka, Beckerman. Forwards: Bunbury, Sepong, Rolfe, Agudelo

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  4. A defector is typically someone who leaves one country for another for ideological reasons. The country to whom the defector goes is often an “enemy” of the defector’s country. Often the country the defector is leaving forbids travel abroad that is not heavily supervised.

    As far as I know Venezuelans are free to come and go as their economic status and their personal desires permit. MLB is full of Venezuelan players who come and go as they please. And there are a few in MLS as well. And of course the immortal Grievous Vasquez plays in the NBA in Memphis of all places. I don’t think Gary Williams, who was unable to get defectors from Baltimore on a consistent enough basis,got him to defect to Maryland.

    While Chavez is not exactly a US buddy, I doubt most Americans, at least outside of Cameron Indoor stadium, view Venezuelans as an “enemy” people. There is no state of war between the US and Venezuela, cold or otherwise.

    Also the Venezuelans have nothing to teach us about crime that we are not already well versed in.

    Finally, the game is in Venezuela so the only players who might possibly “defect” would be US players.

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