USA will play Colombia in a friendly in London next month, U.S. Soccer confirmed on Wednesday.
The two countries will meet on Nov. 14 at Craven Cottage after U.S. Soccer struck a deal with the Colombian federation to add a second friendly during this FIFA window.
USA head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said the match against the World Cup quarterfinalists will present a stern test for his side. USA has defeated Czech Republic and drawn Ecuador and Honduras in its three matches since the World Cup, but the prospect of playing third-ranked Colombia will offer a different sort of challenge.
"Colombia showed in the World Cup that they are one of the top teams in the world," Klinsmann said in a statement. "They have some tremendous attacking talent like Radamel Falcao at Manchester United, James Rodriguez, who won the Golden Boot at the World Cup and now plays at Real Madrid, Adrian Ramos from Dortmund, who was one of the top scorers in the Bundesliga, and Carlos Bacca, who won the Europa League with Sevilla. So overall, it's a squad with a lot of experience playing at the highest level, and this will be another great benchmark for us. We are thrilled to be playing at Craven Cottage, which holds so many good memories for U.S. players. It will be a unique experience."
Klinsmann is expected to summon his players to London in the second week of November to prepare for the busy slate. In addition to the match against the Colombians, USA will also face the Republic of Ireland in Dublin on Nov. 18 to complete their commitments for the year.
U.S. Soccer discussed a potential friendly with Croatia for this window, but the two parties – despite a Croatian federation announcement to the contrary -- never reached an agreement on the fixture. The open date allowed the Americans and the Colombians to come to terms on this match after a potential meeting in San Antonio fell through in September, while the Croatians are now expected to face Argentina at Upton Park instead.
