USA vs. Wales: Top Storylines, Odds, Live Stream for World Cup 2022
The United States men's national team returns to the FIFA World Cup for the first time in eight years on Monday.
Gregg Berhalter's side opens its Group B campaign against Wales at 2 p.m. ET.
Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie lead one of the youngest teams in the tournament into what could be one of the most difficult groups to navigate in Qatar.
All four of the sides drawn into Group B are ranked inside the top 20 in the FIFA men's soccer world rankings.
Wales will end a much longer World Cup drought when it takes the field on Monday. The Welsh have not participated in a World Cup since their quarterfinal run in 1958.
Gareth Bale is the main attraction on the Welsh roster, but he is far from the only important piece in the squad.
Wales must remain organized in defense and get a few big plays from the non-Bale players to counter the USMNT's firepower in midfield.
Pulisic, McKennie and Tyler Adams lead a star-studded American midfield, but the USMNT is still without a consistent goal-scorer. That could either turn into its biggest strength, or be its downfall in Qatar.
Game Odds and Info
Game Odds
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
United States (+140; bet $100 to win $145)
Wales (+225)
Draw (+210)
Match Info
Date: Monday, November 21
Start Time: 2 p.m. ET
TV: Fox
Live Stream: FoxSports.com and Fox Sports app
Who Scores the USMNT's Goals?
The USMNT has attempted to answer its issue of not having a sure fire No. 9 for quite some time.
Jesús Ferreira, Josh Sargent and Haji Wright were chosen as the options by manager Gregg Berhalter. That left 19-year-old Ricardo Pepi at home, as well as Jordan Pefok.
Ferreira, Sargent and Wright have 13 international goals between them. Ferreira and Sargent are likely the top options to start against Wales. Wright, who was a surprise inclusion in the squad, could come off the bench.
The chance creation is expected to be there from Pulisic and a list of talented midfielders that are plying their trade in the top European leagues. Gio Reyna, Brenden Aaronson and Tim Weah are the candidates to start in midfield along with Pulisic, McKennie, Tyler Adams and Yunus Musah.
Ferreira and Sargent have had their struggles throughout World Cup qualifying with finishing the significant chances and getting involved in the game from the striker position.
The hope is that one of the forwards takes his role by storm and gets hot over the next few weeks in Qatar.
If not, one of the attacking midfielders, likely Pulisic, will have to step up and find the back of the net. Pulisic has the most international goals of any American player on the roster with 21. Jordan Morris, who will be used in a reserve role, has 11 goals.
The other way for the USMNT to score is off set pieces. McKennie is fantastic in the air, as is center back Walker Zimmerman.
How Can the Non-Gareth Bale Players Impact Wales' Attack?
Gareth Bale will receive the most attention out of the Welsh attackers because of his prowess in massive games.
Bale scored countless big goals in the UEFA Champions League for Real Madrid and he is coming off a 128th-minute game-tying header for LAFC in MLS Cup that sent the game to penalties.
Bale's LAFC teammate, Kellyn Acosta, could help the Americans with some extra intelligence on the superstar's tendencies, but chances are Bale will be open for at least one or two scoring opportunities on Monday.
Wales needs its other attacking players to produce strong performances on Monday to show that its attack can be multi-dimensional and take it to the knockout round.
Fulham's Daniel James, Nottingham Forest's Brennan Johnson and Bournemouth's Kieffer Moore will all shoulder attacking responsibilities at some point in the tournament.
At least one member of that trio needs to step up in the group stage for Wales to have a chance of beating out the USMNT and Iran for a spot that most people believe will partner England to the knockout round.
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