Qualifiers Pt. II

Tonight, the United States faces Guatemala (in Guatemala) in the first of three remaining World Cup Qualifiers (ESPN2 10 pm EST). Having already qualified, the United States will be sending several uncapped or inexperienced players. Here is the roster for tonight's game:

Goalkeepers (2) – Marcus Hahnemann (Reading FC), Matt Reis (New England Revolution)

Defenders (6) – Chris Albright (Los Angeles Galaxy), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Nick Garcia (Kansas City Wizards), Frankie Hejduk (Columbus Crew), Chad Marshall (Columbus Crew), Greg Vanney (FC Dallas)

Midfielders (6) – Chris Armas (Chicago Fire), Bobby Convey (Reading FC), Clint Dempsey (New England Revolution), Pablo Mastroeni (Colorado Rapids), Santino Quaranta (D.C. United), Steve Ralston (New England Revolution)

Forwards (4) – Jeff Cunningham (Colorado Rapids), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Eddie Johnson (FC Dallas), Taylor Twellman (New England Revolution)

I have no idea who Bruce Arena will start, but I'm willing to guess it might look something like this:

Goalkeeper: Marcus Hahnemann
Defenders: Chris Albright, Jimmy Conrad, Chad Marshall (Greg Vanney?), Frankie Hedjuk
Midfielders: Santino Quaranto, Pablo Mastroeni, Landon Donovan, Bobby Convey
Forwards: Taylor Twellman, Eddie Johnson

This is going to be a very difficult match for the United States. Historically, their record in Guatemala is not sensational, Guatemala has everything to play for, and of course, this is not a first team squad. That said, I also don't think the U.S. will lose this match, a tie seems the most likely outcome.

Some soccer articles:

Nice Galarcep article on the importance of Claudio Reyna

The New York Times sheds some light on that disastrous Uzbekistan - Bahrain qualifier

Galarcep again, this time on the Guatemala match