USMNT wraps up January camp with scoreless draw against Colombia
Team USA forward Hoppe, Matthew and Columbia defender Mosquera, Juan David exchange word during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Julian Gressel kicks the ball defended by Columbia midfielder Daniel Ruiz during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Emmanuel Sabbi headers the ball during the second half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Brandon Vázquez vies for the ball against Columbia defender Alexis Pérez during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Matthew Hoppe moves the ball up the pitch defended by Columbia defender Juan David Mosquera during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Brandon Vázquez attempts a goal shot against Columbia defender Alexis Pérez during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Alan Soñora looks for an open teammate during the second half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Paxten Aaronson is tripped up by Columbia midfielder Daniel Ruiz during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Kellyn Acosta kicks the ball during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender DeJuan Jones dribbles the ball defended by Columbia defender Juan David Mosquera during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Jalen Neal recovers the ball against Columbia during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Paul Arriola dribbles the ball against Columbia during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Columbia forward Cristian Arango reacts to a call during the first half of an international friendly against Team USA Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA head coach Anthony Hudson directs his team during the second half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Matthew Hoppe heads the ball against Columbia defender Andrés Llinás during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Vázquez, Brandon dribbles the ball against Columbia during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Kellyn Acosta chases the ball against Columbia during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
A Team USA fans cheers during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Kellyn Acosta heads to a corner kick during the first half of an international friendly against the Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
A Team USA fan beats a drum during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA fans cheer during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The match ended in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA fans cheer during the second half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Aaron Long heads the ball against Columbia forward Diber Cambindo during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender John Tolkin vies for the ball against Columbia forward Diego Valoyes during the second half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Columbia defender Frank Fabra headers the ball against Team USA midfielder Eryk Williamson during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Walker Zimmerman warms up prior to the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Columbia head coach Néstor Gabriel Lorenzo looks on during the first half of an international friendly against Team USA Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Kellyn Acosta defends against Columbia forward Juan Camilo Hernandez during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Eryk Williamson kicks the ball against Columbia during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Jesús Ferreira warms up prior to the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Paxten Aaronson recovers the ball during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Tolkin, John brings the ball up the pitch during the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
A man and child dressed in Team USA attire look on prior to the first half of an international friendly against Columbia Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
A Columbia fan looks on prior to the first half of an international friendly against Team USA Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Matthew Hoppe vies for the ball defended by Columbia defender Andrés Llinás during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA defender Walker Zimmerman kicks the ball against Columbia during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Paul Arriola brings the ball up the pitch against Columbia during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA midfielder Paxten Aaronson kicks the ball defended by Columbia midfielder Yilmar Velazquez during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
Team USA forward Jesús Ferreira dribbles the ball defended by Columbia defender Andrés Llinás during the first half of an international friendly Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. (Photo by Raul Romero Jr., Contributing Photographer)
CARSON — The U.S. Men’s National soccer team’s meeting with Colombia Saturday didn’t have the pace and intensity of a normal January friendly.
It didn’t take long for everyone involved to realize that as Colombia’s Yilmar Velazquez picked up a yellow card inside the first five minutes for his tackle on Paul Arriola.
That set the tone for what was a high-paced first 45 minutes that included two more yellow cards for Colombia.
“The way I saw it from the touchline, it could have easily been a qualifying game,” U.S. interim coach Anthony Hudson said. “It was a very intense game. I don’t think there were any moments in the game where the game went very slow and calm.
“It was a game full of transitions, quick game and I felt in the first half there was a lot more back and forth. We changed a few things at halftime to get a little bit stability, but it was a really good test for our players, especially some of the younger guys, this will be great experience for them.”
However, neither team was able to break through on the scoreboard and the game ended scoreless in front of a sellout crowd of 27,000 at Dignity Health Sports Park.
The U.S. had two shots on goal and Colombia had just one.
January camps are usually meant to uncover pieces that can help throughout the year. For this camp, Hudson called in 13 players who were looking for their senior team debuts.
“Overall, we achieved our objectives,” Hudson said. “We had a bunch of players we wanted to see with us and in competitive games. It was a case of being able to look at these players in our environment and balancing in there being able to get through two games with the amount of players that can play 90 minutes.”
Paxten Aaronson (Eintracht Frankfurt) and John Tolkin (New York Red Bulls) made their national team debuts. Both were in the starting lineup. Emmanuel Sabbi and Sam Rogers were both second-half subs, bringing the total of national team debuts in the two games to 12. The previous high was eight in 2006.
“The objective of this camp was to look for new players,” Hudson said.
Galaxy defender Jalen Neal, who made his debut in Wednesday’s 2-1 loss against Serbia, entered a sub in the 69th minute. He was pressed into action late as a Colombian winger went down the left flank, but before he could get a shot off, Neal was on the spot to redirect the shot.
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In their meetings, the U.S. has three wins over Colombia and all three have come in California. The first was 1-0 win a friendly in 1984 at Coliseum, the second was 2-1 win at the Rose Bowl in the 1994 FIFA World Cup and the last was in 2005, a 3-0 at CS Fullerton’s Titan Stadium.
They faced each other twice at 2016 Copa America Centenario, with Colombia winning both.
Next up for the U.S. will be the CONCACAF Nations League in March against Grenada (March 24) and El Salvador (March 27). Those dates fall on the FIFA international window and will be the first time that the U.S. will at least have the opportunity to call in some of the European-based players from the 2022 FIFA World Cup team.
“I feel very privileged to have been part of the last four years,” Hudson said. “The players love playing for this team and until I’m told otherwise, I’m going to do what I can to try to improve this team.”
After the CONCACAF Nations League, the U.S. will participate in the Gold Cup, starting in June.
