Add Turkey to the USMNT's pre-World Cup schedule; the UEFA nation will visit Philadelphia on May 29th, the last friendly before the Americans head off to South Africa and their date with England (not to mention Algeria and Slovenia).
It's nice to the schedule begin to fill out a bit, and though many fans will wonder why there aren't more friendlies set, a match against Turkey will be a strong test against a side with plenty of pride to play for after failing to make the World Cup themselves. Better yet, I can't imagine that the Turkish diaspora in the United States will be descending on Philly in large enough numbers to ruin a home send off, making the match a smart move simply from a "feel good" perspective.
The Turkey match alone won't be enough to sate everyone, of course. There still seems to be a large portion of the fan base mildly concerned that the US hasn't already scheduled more matches, and more matches against quality opponents. While Mexico sets up six match tours of the US, the Americans have only booked games against the Netherlands (March 3rd) and Turkey.
Not that Mexico is really testing themselves with matches against the likes of Iceland (ranked 94th), New Zealand (a World Cup team, but ranked 79th), and Senegal (ranked 91st). Are the Americans' two matches worth more in a "quality over quantity" sense than the Mexican full slate? Maybe, but since the American preparations are an individual concern that really has nothing to do with anyone else, it doesn't really matter. Make note of the last date on the Mexican tour, the match set for Reliant Stadium in Houston; the opponent is "TBD" and could end up being the United States.
Perhaps more aptly assessed is the warm-up schedules of the Americans' Group C opponents, England, Algeria, and Slovenia. It's those three sides the US will need to get enough points off of to advance to the knockout rounds anyway, so it might be a better to take a look at their plans*:
England
3/3 versus Egypt, at Wembley Stadium, London
Algeria
3/3 versus Serbia, at Stade du 5 Julliet, Algiers
5/29 versus Ireland at Croke Park, Dublin
Slovenia
3/3 versus Qatar, Petrol Arena, Cleje, Slovenia
*These are the dates I could confirm with a cursory search of the web and federations sites.
In comparison, the US schedule is fine. In fact, the US schedule looks pretty good all things considered, especially with the stern test that the Netherlands will present in only a few weeks. Remember that between now and the send-off match against Turkey that the only FIFA date is March 3rd.
How does everyone feel about facing Turkey in Philly?
*UPDATE* Add Czech Republic on May 25th at a location to be determined (Rentschler Field at in Hartford is among the rumors) to the USMNT schedule, per a US Soccer press release today.
