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The United States Men’s National Team returns to the pitch for the first time Wednesday since backing their way into a World Cup spot with a 2-0 loss at Costa Rica in March. The Americans will host fellow World Cup qualifier Morocco at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati. This is the first of four games for the US in this international window as they play another friendly against Uruguay on Sunday before shifting focus to CONCACAF Nations League games against Grenada and El Salvador. There are a couple of key lineup questions coach Gregg Berhalter will be looking to answer in this window so don’t expect the Americans to take it easy.
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook
USA vs Morocco Odds
Moneyline
Morocco +290 | United States -105 | Draw +200
Spread
Morocco +1 (-130) | United State -1 (+290)
Total
Over 2.5 (+126) | Under 2.5 (-174)
USA vs Morocco Moneyline Prediction
Friendlies can always be tricky to handicap because motivation is hard to parse in a lot of them and the extra number of substitutions can change the flow of the game dramatically. You can’t plan for how substitutions will affect the game, but you can get a feel for the motivation and there should be plenty for the US. There are a couple of key areas they’re looking for answers in. At the outset of this game, the United States should be on the front foot based on the lineup they’re planning on putting out. Christian Pulisic, Brenden Aaronson, Timothy Weah, Yunus Musah and Jesus Ferreira give the Americans quite the punch in attack so this is not the kind of game where the US is going to tread lightly. Morocco is plenty capable themselves and aren’t going to be intimidated by the hosts, but you should expect the US to really go for it so given that you’re only paying five cents of juice the hosts are pretty decent value.
Pick: United States -105
USA vs Morocco Total Prediction
It’s been a while since either team has played so there may be some rust, but there are a couple of factors that point to goals being scored in this game. The aforementioned US attack has potency and this window is huge for Ferreira in particular. Right now he’s the first-choice striker for the US. He’s leading MLS in scoring and with Ricardo Pepi having an awful season at Augsburg and Josh Sargent languishing at the bottom of the Premier League at Norwich, the job is Ferreira’s to win. Also given that he has two months all to himself to impress the staff while the European based players are in the offseason, he can start to distance himself from the competition and it starts with this window. On the other end of the field, the biggest question is how will the US replace Miles Robinson in central defense. Robinson and Walker Zimmerman formed a good dynamic in qualifying, but Robinson suffered an Achilles tear last month which ended his year. Aaron Long gets the first crack at replacing him and he’s a solid defender, but the new pairing combined with some mixing and matching that could go on late with all the substitutions should open up some scoring for Morocco.
Pick: Over 2.5 (+126)
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