LONDON -- The US national team will technically be the home team when they play 2014 World Cup quarterfinalists Colombia at London's Craven Cottage on Friday (2:45 pm ET; ESPN, UniMas).
But USMNT manager Jurgen Klinsmann is expecting his team to be the visitors by the time kick off rolls around.
“It’s huge to play these sort of games outside of our normal comfort zone, away from the United States, in order to grow and to learn," Klinsmann said at a Thursday press conference. "You can only win from something like this. We want to beat Colombia.
"I know it’s going to almost be like a home game for Colombia, with all their fans here in London. But that’s what we need. We need to grow; we need to have those experiences. And I think it’s going to be a great test for us."
As of Thursday, 23,500 tickets had been sold for the match at the 25,700-capacity venue, equaling the record for an international there, held by Brazil-Ghana in 2011.
It will only heighten the atmosphere around a match that Klinsmann feels will reveal a lot about his team, specifically its ability to obtain a result against a major opponent – the exact scenario the USMNT would face if they can make a deep World Cup run in 2018.
“It’s a very, very good benchmark playing against a team, which is among the top five in the world, with outstanding players, obviously you know them all," Klinsmann said. “For us, it’s important for us to have these games that allow us to solve problems on the field in one-match situations because, once we get to the World Cup again, how do we advance out of the knockout system?
"We need to develop that mindset, that mentality, and that’s why we need these games against the best teams that we can find."
To beat Colombia, Klinsmann will rely on two England-based players, Aston Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan, who will get the start in goal, and Sunderland forward Jozy Altidore, who will serve as captain against the South Americans.
But the most intriguing figure in camp might just be 28-year-old New England Revolution star Lee Nguyen, whose 18 regular-season goals and two playoff tallies have him on a US senior roster for the first time since 2007. Klinsmann hinted that Nguyen could see the field for his fourth career US cap.
“You bring in players like Nguyen because you want to see if they can prove themselves on the field, maybe not always straight away,” Klinsmann said. “But I think it’s a real compliment to Lee because he’s played a great season so far, and we want him to have that recognition.
"Hopefully we can throw him in there and he’ll get that first experience with the senior team. He’s worked really well with the group so far, he’s slotted in like he’s always been there.”
The question is whether Nguyen will be the only novelty on the night. With New England midfielder Jermaine Jones slotting in at center back in the USA's last match and players like Mix Diskerud and DeAndre Yedlin also assuming different spots on the field, Klinsmann hasn't been afraid to experiment. But he doesn't want any excuses against Colombia come Friday.
“You always want results, but at the same time you always want long-term development, you want long-term improvement, so you make compromises because you want to see a specific player grow," Klinsmann said. "So there will be times when you experiment, with the risk that sometimes you might lose a game. But no, tomorrow night, I want to see a result against a very good team.”
