USMNT to play friendly vs. Honduras on October 14

Both the Ecuador and Honduras matches are on FIFA international dates so Jurgen Klinsmann will be able to call in any players he would like. He has already said that Landon Donovan will play in the Ecuador contest, a farewell of sorts for the retiring American legend, but he is not expected to play against Honduras.

Normally, the rosters for the two friendlies on a double international date are the same so with the exception of Donovan, the U.S. will likely have the same team for Honduras that they have for Ecuador. It should be a nearly full strength team, with Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore all in the squad. Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, Graham Zusi and Julian Green should all be there as well, but it is unlikely to be an entirely top team. Klinsmann is still expected to call in some young players, giving some of the country’s best prospects a chance to prove themselves on the international stage.

The U.S. and Honduras are two of the more amicable CONCACAF nations, with their fans normally treating each other well and the two federations often scheduling friendlies against each other. They played three years ago in Miami as well, just after Klinsmann took over as American manager, and the U.S. earned their first win under their German boss thanks to a Dempsey goal.

In last year’s World Cup qualifying, the U.S. beat Honduras at home, but the Catrachos bested the Americans in San Pedro Sula. Both teams qualified for the World Cup, with the U.S. advancing to the round of 16 and Honduras looking like one of the tournament’s worst teams, losing all three matches and alienating fans with a physical -- borderline dirty -- style of play.

Honduras have Copa Centroamericana in September, which will serve as their qualifying for the 2015 Gold Cup. The U.S. are already in the Gold Cup and, assuming the Catrachos qualify, the October friendlies will be part of both teams’ preparations for that tournament to crown CONCACAF’s best team.