Football
ESPN staff 7y

Clint Dempsey on U.S. bench again in qualifier against Costa Rica

Clint Dempsey is again on the bench for the U.S. in Friday night's World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica.

Dempsey twice came off the bench in the Gold Cup knockout stage and provided the spark as the U.S. won the trophy earlier this summer.

And the Sounders man was back among the substitutes at Red Bull Arena, with coach Bruce Arena giving the starting nod up front to Bobby Wood and Jozy Altidore.

Dempsey's goal against Costa Rica in the Gold Cup semifinal equaled Landon Donovan's all-time U.S. goal scoring record, and he's still in search of the 58th that will put him alone in the top spot.

Jorge Villafana and Graham Zusi are the full-backs for the 12th time in 2017, but there was a new center-back pairing as Tim Ream and Geoff Cameron team up for the first time.

The U.S. trails second-place Costa Rica by three points in the final CONCACAF hexagonal round with four games to play. The top three teams qualify for the World Cup while the fourth goes to an intercontinental playoff.

The U.S. is still riding a 14-match unbeaten streak since Arena became coach, the second-longest in team history.

Goalkeeper: Tim Howard

Defenders: Jorge Villafana, Tim Ream, Geoff Cameron, Graham Zusi

Midfielders: Darlington Nagbe, Christian Pulisic, Michael Bradley, Fabian Johnson

Forwards: Bobby Wood, Jozy Altidore

Substitutes: Brad Guzan, Nick Rimando, Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, DaMarcus Beasley, Clint Dempsey, Alejandro Bedoya, Dax McCarty, Eric Lichaj, Kellyn Acosta, Jordan Morris, Paul Arriola

Costa Rica XI: Keylor Navas; Johnny Acosta, Francisco Calvo, Kendall Waston, Bryan Oviedo; Cristian Gamboa, Celso Borges, David Guzman, Bryan Ruiz; Christian Bolanos, Marcos Urena

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