HARTFORD, Connecticut (Reuters):
THE UNITED States will play Jamaica on April 11 in a friendly that will give players a final chance to impress coach Bruce Arena before he names his 23-man squad for the World Cup finals.
The match will be played in Cary, North Carolina, less than a month before the U.S. team begins a two-week training camp at the facility.
"The match in Cary is our last game before we make our final decisions on the World Cup roster," said Arena, "so it's obviously an important one for us."
Jamaica, who failed to qualify for the finals, have never beaten the U.S. in 16 matches with the U.S. winning nine times and the other seven matches between them ending in draws since they first met in 1988.
"With our World Cup training camp scheduled here in May and the great success that we had in Cary in advance of the 2002 World Cup, it's great to schedule an actual international game for the fans in the area."
Using an under-strength squad, the U.S. routed Guatemala 4-0 on Sunday. They play Poland in Kaiserslautern, Germany, next Wednesday before a match with World Cup hosts Germany in Dortmund on March 22. At least three other friendlies against opponents yet to be finalised are scheduled before the World Cup begins.
The U.S. open their World Cup campaign on June 12 against the Czech Republic in Gelsenkirchen followed by matches against Italy on June 17 in Kaiserslautern and Ghana on June 22 in Nuremberg.
