The United States take on Jamaica in the semifinals of the 2023/24 CONCACAF Nations League on Thursday as they aim to move a step closer to winning the competition for the third time.
USMNT have triumphed in the first two editions of the Nations League, beating Mexico in the inaugural final in 2020, before defending their title against Canada last year.
Gregg Berhalter's side are now just two wins away from making it a hat-trick of titles, but before they can start thinking about a potential final against either Panama or Mexico, they must first get the better of Jamaica at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
Jamaica are through to the semi-finals of the Nations League for the first time after overcoming Canada in the last eight and they head into the contest in good form, having lost just once in nine matches.
History in the Nations League certainly favors USMNT heading into this showdown, as does their record against Jamaica, as they are unbeaten in the last six meetings between the pair and have not lost a competitive match to the Reggae Boyz since 2015.
However, most clashes between these teams tend to be tight, with the last two both having finished 1-1, including during the group stage of the 2023 Gold Cup when a late strike from forward Brandon Vazquez was required to salvage a point for USMNT.
Canada are the only side to have beaten Heimir Hallgrimsson's Reggae Boyz across their last nine matches. After losing 2-1 in the first leg of that Nations League quarterfinal tie against Canada, Jamaica got revenge by winning the reverse match 3-2 in Toronto to advance on away goals.
Scoring does not appear to be a problem for the Reggae Boyz, who have notched in 14 of their 17 matches over the last 12 months. Scoring against the United States is also not an issue for Jamaica, who have netted in six of the last eight meetings between the two sides and should do so again on Thursday.
However, with home advantage in Arlington, a superior head-to-head record and history on their side in the Nations League, the United States should have enough about them to progress through to the final.
Jamaica have scored 14 goals across their six matches in this season's Nations League, with more than a third of their strikes being netted by Clermont forward Shamar Nicholson.
Nicholson struck three of his five goals in the competition during the quarterfinal tie with Canada, finding the net in the home leg before scoring a decisive brace in the return match.
The 26-year-old has now scored 16 times for his country in 46 appearances and, although he has only struck four goals at club level for Clermont this season, there are mitigating factors there as he is playing for a struggling side who sit bottom of the Ligue 1 standings.
Returning to the national set-up this week may hand Nicholson some much-needed relief from his team's toils at club level and do not be surprised if the former Charleroi star gets on the scoresheet against the USMNT.
Another player capable of finding the net on Thursday is United States forward Ricardo Pepi, who is enjoying a stellar first season with Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven with eight goals across all competitions, including a strike in the Champions League against Sevilla.
The 21-year-old has also scored 10 goals in 22 appearances for USMNT since making his debut in 2021, with seven of his strikes on the international stage coming across his last 10 games.
The most recent of those efforts was against Trinidad and Tobago in the first leg of their Nations League quarterfinal tie in November and he is capable of adding another when Jamaica head to the AT&T Stadium.
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Jamaica | +650 ML |
Tie | +333 ML |
USA | -225 ML |
Folarin Balogun | +150 |
Christian Pulisic | +175 |
Ricardo Pepi | +175 |
Haji Wright | +200 |
Michail Antonio | +500 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.