Saudis are no slouch, but back the USMNT to beat them in the Gold Cup

It’s tough to feel confident about the U.S. men’s national team even after a 5-0 win against Trinidad & Tobago in their opening round game of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

For starters, it was one of the worst Trinidadian teams in recent memory, and the Americans played them on home soil. However, there were takeaways in that match that fans hope to see replicated when the U.S. plays Saudi Arabia inside the Q2 Stadium in Austin on Thursday (9:15 p.m., FS1).

The Saudis are a different beast, featuring crafty players with the talent to press the Americans and make it a difficult night if the U.S. can’t get out on the front foot, spearheaded an attack for them that best starts out of the back, with players like midfielders Tyler Adams and Diego Luna, the latter a rising star on the U.S. national team.

Luna was the creator of a pair of goals against Trinidad, donning the role of playmaker for much of the match. But it was Alex Freeman and Malik Tillman who fueled the win, with Tillman celebrating a two goal night and Freeman with a stat sheet that showed all over the map.

Despite Fanduel odds suggesting otherwise, Saudi Arabia’s entrant as a guest nation isn’t as much of a slouch as one might think. The Saudis are big underdogs at +550, but we’re talking about a team with many players that stood toe-to-toe with Argentina — and nearly won during group play of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Sure, that was three years ago, but the Saudis haven’t slowed down. They enter Thursday’s contest with a 1-0 win in the opening round against Haiti, and prior to the Gold Cup defeated Jordan, Bahrain, and finished with a scoreless draw against Japan.

However, none of those nations are Top 20 in the world, and while the Saudis will keep things close, the Americans are favored to win at -190, and should be safe bet, but it won’t be another blowout.

Fanduel has some fun odds for this one, but before all that, consider their four-leg same game parlay, which has moneyline odds on the U.S. to win, in addition to an anytime goal from Malik Tillman, the Americans ahead at the half, and both teams to score.

There’s precedent for all of it, and at +1206, it could make for a fun night. Other gems are Luna getting on the scoresheet after his performance against T&T. He was close on a number of occasions in the opener, and he’s due for one — especially at +185, odds are even better for another assist, with Luna at +330 after handing out a pair the other night. Lastly, with the U.S. getting an early goal in this one, that makes +100 look really tempting in favor of the Americans leading at the half.

On top of all that, Fanduel is offering a no-sweat bet token on any wager in this match. Your wager must have final odds of -200 or longer, however, to qualify for the token. Here are more details on that and how to claim the offer.

If the U.S. can replicate the performance that fueled a rout of Trinidad against the Saudis, then a 3-1 win against a Saudi group that is more physically demanding than T&T was still seems in the cards for the men’s national team. That combination has odds of +370 on Fanduel, in addition to 2-1, or 4-1, if the U.S. has it in them to make it another exciting night.