The moment has arrived. The final round of Concacaf World Cup Qualifying begins tonight.
The US men's national team start their quest to return to the World Cup with a match against El Salvador at San Salvador's Estadio Cuscatlán (10:05 pm ET | CBS Sports Network, Universo, Paramount+). Ahead of that, Canada will make their entrance into the final round of qualifying for the first time since 1996 when they take on Honduras at Toronto's BMO Field (8:05 pm ET | One Soccer, Parampunt+).
Here are five things you should know headed into the final stretch to Qatar 2022.
It's a new era for Concacaf, as this year's World Cup Qualifying cycle marks the end of the traditional "Hexagonal" round in favor of a new geometric shape. With the implementation of the "Octagonal" format, the field will be expanded from the traditional six that made up the hex, into eight nations that will play 14 matches (seven home, seven away) for three direct qualification bids to the World Cup on the line. The fourth-place finisher will face off against either an opponent from the Asian Football Confederation, Conmebol or the Oceania Football Confederation in an intercontinental playoff.
For those uninitiated on the finer points of the new format, MLSsoccer.com's Charles Boehm has a full breakdown of what to expect when "The Ocho" gets underway.
There's no need to fully rehash the events of the USMNT's failed 2018 World Cup Qualifying bid that ended in disastrous fashion during that infamous October 2017 loss at Trinidad & Tobago. What matters now is what the new generation of players does with the opportunity to atone for that undeniably low moment in the history of the program.
Nothing is a given in Concacaf, as we all learned in painful fashion, but the talent is all there – at least on paper. Christian Pulisic, an 18-year-old upstart during the last qualifying cycle, remains the centerpiece, but the US and Chelsea star is now joined by a whole collection of fellow early-20s prodigies, many developed in MLS and now plying their trade for top clubs in Europe, including Juventus' Weston McKennie, RB Leipzig's Tyler Adams and Borussia Dortmund's Gio Reyna to name a few.
The US won both Concacaf Nations League and Gold Cup trophies in a successful summer, and that has helped lay a promising foundation. Now it's time to get it done when the lights are the brightest.
It's exciting times for the Canadian men's national team, who boast a golden generation of their own. That squad will look to snap a drought that has seen them miss out on qualification since a generation ago in 1986. This group of Canadians certainly has a very different look and feel, led by multiple players with world-class talent.
Former Vancouver Whitecaps homegrown and current Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies leads the way, breaking out on the world stage following his move to the German giants, becoming one of the most electric fullbacks in the world and winning both league and UEFA Champions League titles. The 20-year-old has a solid argument as the best player in Concacaf on any team.
Jonathan David, a forward with Ligue 1 champions Lille, is a young and dynamic presence on the front line, while players like former MLSer Cyle Larin and longtime midfielder and captain Atiba Hutchinson bring European soccer pedigree to Les Rouges. This is the most compelling group Canada have fielded in quite some time and one that has the top-end talent to make some real noise once the games kick off. Head coach John Herdman's biggest challenge will be figuring out what cards to play with his lineups.
There will MLS representation galore throughout the Octagonal, prominently on a US team that features faces like Matt Turner, George Bello, James Sands, Walker Zimmerman, Kellyn Acosta, Sebastian Lletget, Ricardo Pepi, and Cristian Roldan — whose brother and Sounder teammate Alex will be on the other side of the field for tonight's matchup after debuting for El Salvador at the Gold Cup.
Some of those players figure to play significant roles, too, with an in-form Turner already named the starter for the opener following Zack Steffen's injury, and players like Acosta, Roldan, Sands, Lletget and Zimmerman all having featured in this summer's victorious Gold Cup run. Canada also feature many MLS players, with Alistair Johnston, Richie Laryea, Liam Fraser, Mark-Anthony Kaye, Jonathan Osorio, Samuel Piette, Tajon Buchanan and Lucas Cavallini all named to Herdman's roster.
But MLS also features players across Concacaf's final eight, including the LA Galaxy's Jonathan dos Santos for Mexico, Chicago Fire FC's Francisco Calvo for Costa Rica, Philadelphia Union stopper Andre Blake on Jamaica, CF Montréal's Romell Quioto on Honduras and Nashville SC's and Panama's Anibal Godoy, to name just a few.
These qualifying cycles are always a grind, but that's even more true for the Octagonal, which is comprised of a hectic schedule of three-match windows that will test the depth of every country involved. That's by necessity, as the COVID-19 pandemic pushed back the start date, meaning all 14 matches had to be crunched into the tight window.
The positive side is that there's a ton of soccer to be played and to be viewed, which is something we can all support. But it also undeniably presents a challenge as it relates to how every coach decides to deploy their lineups and rotate their squads to keep their players fresh and ensure they can withstand the rigorous stretch of matches.
It's going to test the players mentally as much as it as is physically, but whoever comes out of it will have the type of experience that can prove invaluable when the big stage arrives in Qatar.
