[dropcap]A[/dropcap]merican soccer fans will finally have a chance to welcome home its team that emerged from the “Group of Death” at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and energized the nation.
Its soccer federation announced Thursday that the U.S. Men’s National Team will play its first home friendly since this summer’s competition against Ecuador, set for Oct. 10 in Hartford, Conn.
“We are really excited to get our first chance to play at home after the World Cup,” U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said in a statement on USSoccer.com. “The support from our fans in the United States and everyone that traveled to Brazil was awesome, and we want to build on that energy. We have an exciting four years ahead of us, and this is just the beginning. The U.S. team has a great history at Rentschler Field, so we are hoping for another big crowd against Ecuador.”
In 11 matches against the South American nation, the USMNT hold two wins, including 1-0 win in 2002 that was goalkeeper Tim Howard’s first cap. The U.S. will look for its third at the home of Connecticut Huskies football, where the team holds a 3-1-0 record.
La Tricolor didn’t advance from Group E at the World Cup, but the CONMEBOL nation did pull four points, including a win over CONCACAF member Honduras.
Not particularly the beneficiary of a strong defense, Ecuador does boast a number of notable attacking options, including the pair of Antonio and Enner Valencia (no relation). While Antonio, a winger at Manchester United, didn’t have the best performance in Brazil — he was sent off for a tackle in the scoreless draw against France – Enner parlayed his three-goal breakout performance at the tournament into a transfer to West Ham United, a five-year deal worth reportedly £12 million pounds.
The match, following the USMNT’s friendly on Sept. 3 in Prague against the Czech Republic, will be just one of Klinsmann’s opportunities to integrate and evaluate players in the lead-up to the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Having been crowned champions of the last tournament, a win in 2015′s competition would automatically secure the U.S. a place in the 2017 Confederations Cup.
The match at Rentschler Field is set to kickoff at 7 p.m. ET, and can be watched on ESPN and UniMas.
This story was originally published by our partners at Press Row Sports & Entertainment.
