SANDY, Utah – RSL captain Kyle Beckerman, goalkeeper Nick Rimando, leading scorer Álvaro Saborío and midfielder Will Johnson will all be in action on Friday night for their respective national teams in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers. Here’s a quick rundown of each of their matches:
Kyle Beckerman and Nick Rimando – U.S. at Antigua & Barbuda – 5 p.m. MT – beIN SPORT TV
A shoo-in for the first XI as recently as two games ago, Beckerman doesn’t look very likely to start the U.S.’s crucial World Cup Qualifier at Antigua & Barbuda on Friday night. The RSL captain was pulled in the second half of the U.S.’s 2-1 loss at Jamaica on Sept. 7 and didn’t play at all in the U.S.’s 1-0 win over Reggae Boyz on Sept. 11.
Rimando will likely be the third-keeper behind Tim Howard and Brad Guzan on Friday. Something will have gone very, very wrong for the U.S. if he sees the field.
Álvaro Saborío – Costa Rica at El Salvador – 5:30 p.m. MT
Saborío will lead the line for Los Ticos against El Salvador in a critical Group B match. Saborio and Costa Rica currently sit in third-place in the group with just two games left in qualifying. Costa Rica needs to jump El Salvador – which is ahead of Los Ticos by one point – in order to qualify for the Hexagonal round.
Will Johnson – Canada v. Cuba – 5:30 p.m. MT – Sportsnet Canada
Like Saborío, Johnson figures to start on Friday night when Canada takes on Cuba at BMO Field in Toronto. The game is an absolute must win for the Canucks, who currently sit in third in Group C, trailing second-place Honduras – which plays Panama on Friday night – on goal differential.
Canada plays at Honduras in what will be a decisive match to see who qualifies for the Hexagonal on Oct. 16.
Be sure to watch all of RSL’s internationals in action on Friday night. We’ll have a full recap of each of their nights later on the site.
