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As Qatar 2022 looms the US look like who they are: Concacaf’s third best team

The US men’s national team drew 0-0 with Saudi Arabia in Spain on Tuesday in their final game before their opening World Cup clash against Wales on 21 November. Following on from Friday’s tame 2-0 loss to Japan in Germany, these were two tune-ups that served to underline the team’s shortcomings rather than solve them, played in low-key atmospheres that felt more like pre-season friendlies than the last international fixtures before a World Cup.

Context is key

It was a series that was more send-to-sleep than send-off, but let’s acknowledge the weird circumstances. A game in front of 364 spectators (yes, 364!) on a bad pitch at the home of third-tier Real Murcia is not the sort of occasion that promotes good vibrations.

Contrast with June 2014, when the US were roared off to Brazil with a pair of 2-1 wins: over Turkey in front of a sell-out 26,672 crowd at Red Bull Arena and Nigeria before 52,033 in Jacksonville. The US beat Ghana in their opening group game in Brazil nine days after that victory in Florida. But this group of players are heading back to their clubs, some of them facing another dozen fixtures or so until Qatar 2022 kicks off.

It would have carried an injury risk but US Soccer may have cause to regret not arranging another friendly in November, as a number of nations have done, including Mexico and Canada. On this evidence a final dress rehearsal on the eve of the tournament would have been useful.

If the US don’t have pace and intensity, they don’t have much

Head coach Gregg Berhalter has discarded some experienced names in order to shape what will be one of the youngest rosters in Qatar. That reflects a conscious break with the past after the failure of Bruce Arena’s veterans to reach the 2018 tournament,

Read more on theguardian.com