Midfielder Jermaine Jones (#13) could be one of the USA's regulars to participate in a January 2017 training camp abd an international friendly against Serbia. (Photo: John Bacon/Straffon Images)
CHICAGO -- The United States will kick-off its 2017 schedule by hosting Serbia in an international friendly on January 29 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California. U.S. Soccer announced Wednesday. The match, which will come at the end of the annual January camp, will be head coach Bruce Arena's first back in charge since he was named as Jurgen Klinsmann’s replacement on last month.
The Americans are expected to schedule another friendly prior to the resumption of CONCACAF qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup with final-round games against Honduras (March 24, home) and Panama (March 28, away).
Serbia currently sits in second place in Group D of UEFA Qualifying for the 2018 World Cup with an unbeaten 2W-0L-2D record.
The U.S. has never faced Serbia exclusively, but did play Yugoslavia – its predecessor -- twice. The first meeting came in a 9-1 defeat on November 28, 1956, in the quarterfinals of that year's Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. The more recent encounter came on June 25, 1998, in Nantes, France, where Yugoslavia earned a 1-0 win in the teams' final group stage match at the 1998 FIFA World Cup
