USMNT

Martin Green has locked in his picks and best bets for the Serbia vs. U.S. Men's National Team international friendly on Wednesday.

- USMNT vs. [Visit SportsLine now to find out which wagers in Serbia vs. Green has broken down the international friendly from every angle. The young roster also includes 11 players who have earned their first USMNT call-up. Last season, Petrovic had seven clean sheets in 21 games and led the league with four penalty-kick stops from 12 attempts. The younger brother of USMNT winger Brenden Aaronson, the 19-year-old Paxten helped the Philadelphia Union finish first in the Eastern Conference last season and earn a spot in the MLS Cup Final. The Serbs have just a 17-player roster. After working in the sports betting industry for several years, Green became a professional sports writer and handicapper and has covered the game worldwide. Caesars Sportsbook lists the USMNT as the -165 favorite (risk $165 to win $100) in its latest USMNT vs. Serbia odds, with Serbia the +410 underdog. Before you lock in your Serbia vs. The Americans are coming off a World Cup in which they reached the knockout stage but lost to the Netherlands, 3-1, in the Round of 16.

LINEUP NOTES USMNT vs. Serbia International Friendlies January 25, 2023. BMO Stadium; Los Angeles, Calif. Kickoff: 10:07 p.m. ET on HBO Max, UNIVERSO, ...

- The USMNT is 0-2-1 all-time against Serbia. The teams last played to a 0-0 draw on Jan. - With the USMNT dressing 23 players tonight, goalkeeper Roman Celentano is a healthy scratch from the gameday squad. Both Cade Cowell and Jonathan Gómez came off the bench to help the USA earn a 1-0 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Dec. - Two of the three starters with caps earned their USMNT debuts at Dignity Health Sports Park. [FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT SERBIA](https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2023/01/2023-usmnt-vs-serbia-match-history-preview-five-things-to-know)

The 24-year-old FC Cincinnati striker opened his USMNT account on his debut with a strong headed finish in the 29th minute.

The goal came from a spell of control from the Stars and Stripes, who looked far more threatening than Serbia. Though most of the danger emerged from Cade Cowell's side on the left flank, Gressel flipped the switch on the opposite flank for the opener. Right back Julian Gressel, also making his USMNT debut, delivered the cross from the right flank to earn the assist.

The United States men's national team officially kicks off the 2026 FIFA World Cup cycle on Wednesday. However, the friendly match against Serbia will be ...

His goal on Wednesday should be to gain chemistry with the attacking players on the field. Slonina had 12 clean sheets for the Fire in 2022 before he moved to England, while Aaronson gained European attention after his performances at the Concacaf Under-20 Championship. Once the moment comes to choose, or the future, I'll decide on that later." Galaxy forward Dejan Joveljic are the most recognizable players on Serbia's roster. Zendejas likely will not make his commitment any time soon because of the uncertainty surrounding the USMNT manager. The FC Dallas academy product has six goals and three assists in 19 games for Club América this season. "I'll probably focus on the future once we get to that standpoint," Zendejas said. It also does not have a manager to implement his system on the group. "I'm enjoying the moment, I'm enjoying the present. The Club América midfielder will only be available for Wednesday's game before he returns to the Liga MX club. El Tri fielded him in two friendlies in 2021 and 2022 despite not filing the official one-time switch between federations with FIFA. The former U.S.

USMNT prospect Joshua Wydner is reportedly the subject of transfer interest from Benfica, with a significant bid on the way.

AND WHAT'S MORE: If he keeps up his current trajectory and eventually breaks through with Benfica, it won't be long before he's in the discussion for senior USMNT action. They already have young fixtures in attack and midfield, but defense is still a work in progress for the future. The Stars and Stripes are keen on trying out up-and-coming players in the coming years ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

In the first game of a new World Cup cycle, the USMNT player pool inspired optimism with young talent in full swing despite losing to Serbia.

So for a lot of guys, it's really the first bit of football action that they've had. The youngster had a few nice moments -- including one sequence in which he was kicked in the head while pushing a ball off the line -- and wasn't really to blame for either of Serbia's goals. It's a little bit different when you have that preseason deal and for a lot of guys it's a week or two into getting back into it. Soccer was hoping the excitement from the World Cup would translate to a better-than-usual January atmosphere, it would have left disappointed. The reality for this type of game is the result doesn't matter. this friendly: "I told the guys in the huddle before the game, anytime we put on this jersey, we don't care if it's a World Cup game or if it's a January camp game. If he's as dangerous for the Quakes as he was against Serbia, it's fair to reignite talks about a potential European transfer. As mentioned above, Cowell was consistently impactful playing down the left wing. Though he's still a long way from seeing the field in England, Slonina certainly has the talent to someday develop into the US No. At 18 years, 255 days, takes the record from Tony Meola, who debuted a few months after his 19th birthday against Vazquez, Zendejas -- both making their first full national team caps -- and Cowell played together in a front three that was lively and consistently dangerous. The

Brandon Vazquez scored to lead the USMNT with seven starters making their international debuts, but the Americans lost 2-1 to Serbia.

The U.S. Cade Cowell, one of five teenagers on the U.S. “I’m disappointed obviously with the result. But after a solid opening half-hour, the team’s youth and inexperience showed up, allowing Serbia to tie the score on Luka Ilic’s free kick through the U.S. Seven starters are dual nationals and two of them teamed up to give the U.S. I love the fact that players were really driving to get forward. “Overall I was really pleased with the performance,” said Hudson, an assistant during last month’s World Cup who is running the team as U.S. Hudson’s starting lineup Wednesday including seven debutantes and three others playing just their second game with the U.S. However, his participation in January camp isn’t indicative of his long-term plans with the team. Wednesday’s young, inexperienced team won’t be the World Cup one; lacking a FIFA competition window, the U.S. [2026 World Cup](https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026), alongside Canada and Mexico, the pressure already is building for the Americans to make a deep run in the tournament. Yet it took an uneven first step on its journey to the next World Cup on Wednesday just the same, dropping a [2-1 decision to Serbia](https://www.ussoccer.com/competitions/usmnt-friendlies-2023/matches/united-states-vs-serbia-1-25-23) before a sparse crowd at newly christened BMO Stadium.

There are big questions for the US men's national team right now, ones that weren't ever going to be answered on Wednesday night in Los Angeles.

[Kellyn Acosta](https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/kellyn-acosta/)wasn’t clean on the ball, especially with his passing, but in terms of just hitting the right rotations and knowing the next pass in the chain to make the movement work, he was a difference-maker once he came on at d-mid. [Cade Cowell](https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/cade-cowell/)we saw in this game was vastly, vastly different from the Cade Cowell [San Jose Earthquakes](https://www.mlssoccer.com/clubs/san-jose-earthquakes/)fans saw through most of what has to go down as a disappointing 2022. [Brandon Vazquez](https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/brandon-vazquez/)had a couple of sloppy touches, but he also had the only US goal and generated multiple looks by just doing fundamental No. [Julian Gressel.](https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/julian-gressel/)Against certain opponents, he’s a valuable addition to the pool. The point of the relatively rigid positional responsibilities baked into Berhalter’s blueprint isn’t just possession for possession’s sake; it’s to create a scheme where the US players are always in position to have numbers around the ball and win possession back quickly, then go again. 8) and Alan Soñora (freelancing so much that he was out of position to counterpress, which caused failures further down the chain) were particularly culpable. Now, obviously, one January camp friendly doesn’t guarantee this will be the case for the US, and, just as obviously, this can all get blown up if the USSF decides to clean house and go in an entirely new direction with the manager and front office. But as long as Earnie Stewart is the sporting director, I don’t think “tear it down and rebuild with a different approach” is in the cards. What we saw suggested that a house style has truly been developed, and it’s one that all the players, from the very top of the roster to the bottom, are going to be expected to execute. And that’s what we saw a young, experimental US side attempt to do on Wednesday. [US men’s national team](https://www.mlssoccer.com/clubs/us-men-s-national-team) right now, ones that weren’t ever going to be answered on Wednesday night in Los Angeles. But it wasn’t directionless, and by god, I’m taking that as a victory.

Brandon Vazquez, Cade Cowell and Gaga Slonina stood out in the 2-1 friendly loss to Serbia.

The United States men's national team didn't have enough to top Serbia. Here are match ratings for the Stars and Stripes from the loss.

He would’ve hoped to make a better play on the second goal, but there’s a lot to like from Neal’s performance. He always looked to play the ball forward or carry it himself, and his technical level is clean and tidy. He could blow the door wide open for the No. Considering he won eight of 11 ground duels, it’d be interesting to see him in a center-mid role than out wide. The 19-year-old LA Galaxy product had a propitious USMNT debut, looking sharp on and off the ball and making the right decisions the majority of the time. CB Walker Zimmerman – 5.5: It’s harsh to say but he was outplayed by a 19-year-old partner who has yet to make his MLS debut. He often played as a single pivot holding midfielder but currently seems best suited in a double pivot role. He can definitely make a run for a backup spot behind Matt Turner and push the competition between the sticks. CM Alan Sonora – 6.5: He played on the opposite side of Pomykal as a left-footer and looked threatening whenever he had it. The first came just before halftime when Luka Ilić converted a free kick, exposing the space Walker Zimmerman and Gressel created. But the next two -- and final -- goals of the game went to Serbia. Right back Julian Gressel delivered a cross into the box that Brandon Vazquez