United States vs. Turkey: Preview

Two more games. Fifteen more days. 

That's all the time Jurgen Klinsmann has left before he must determine how the United States will line up for its most important match in four years. 

The match on June 16 against Ghana is fast approaching, and the manager will no doubt be hoping today's pre-tournament friendly (against a quality opponent) goes a long way in answering any lingering questions he may still have about his squad.

The Details

Teams: United States vs. Turkey

Time: 2:00 PM EST

Venue: Red Bull Arena, New Jersey, USA

Television: ESPN 2

Injury Update

In what will surely come as music to the ears of American supporters, striker Clint Dempsey is expected to feature from the start against Turkey.

The former Tottenham attacker removed himself from the starting lineup just prior to kick-off against Azerbaijan earlier this week, citing groin tightness, and Klinsmann understandably took a cautious approach, not wanting to put any unnecessary strain on one of his most vital players.

But the German bench boss was quoted just days ago as saying that the ailment is not a concern heading into today's contest, and that Dempsey will be on the field come the opening whistle.

"He's all good. Today they have an easy regen day, travel day. So by tomorrow full speed in training. Everything is good," Klinsmann said.

"There's no reason why we should risk now anything. It was not really risk, but it was a lot of work they put in here the last two-and-a-half weeks, so we just decided there on the field, c'mon, it's good [to sit him]. But he's ready to go."

Deep breath, everyone. 

As for Fatih Terim and company, there are conflicting reports surrounding the health of star midfielder Arda Turan, who recently missed out on the Champions League final with Atletico Madrid due to an undisclosed knock that he suffered in the final match of the La Liga season against Barcelona.

Historic Head-to-Head

The two teams have met just three times before, with each side recording a victory against the other whilst seeing one match end in a draw.

Not exactly a large, or meaningful, sample size with which to draw conclusions from ahead of today's contest in New Jersey.

Last Meeting

In the build-up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the Americans welcomed Turkey to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia for one final tune-up match before jumping on the plane.

A first half goal from Arda Turan was cancelled out shortly after the interval by Jozy Altidore, before none other than Dempsey stepped up and scored the winner in the 75th minute.

Landon Donovan (remember him) assisted on both goals for the United States.

How times change.

3 Things To Watch

Dempsey to the Rescue

He's been the focus of this entire discussion so far, and with good reason. 

The Seattle Sounders striker is absolutely vital to his team's chances in Brazil, something that was all too evident as he watched helplessly from the sidelines while his teammates laboured to an uninspiring 2-0 win over Azerbaijan.

Devoid of the necessary cutting edge for much of the contest against a packed defense, the U.S. had to rely on set pieces to find their goals. A positive in that they can be threatening from a dead ball situation, but their inability to create any semblance of an attack from open play was worrying.

That should change today, even against a better opponent.

Not only will Dempsey be able to open up more space for his projected strike partner Jozy Altidore, but his presence will go a very long way in helping the diamond midfield that Klinsmann seems intent on using function properly.

Michael Bradley needs space to operate, and with Dempsey in the fold, Turkey - and more importantly Ghana, Portugal and Germany - will have to be mindful of the fact that he is a threat in the way Chris Wondolowski simply is not.

That should open up space and create lanes in which the Toronto FC star can operate, which will make the Americans more dangerous going forward.

The Outside of the Diamond

While much of the focus is, appropriately, on the impact the Dempsey will have in making the diamond midfield operate to its maximum potential, a large portion of that responsibility falls on the two 'wide' players in midfield.

Against Azerbaijan, Graham Zusi and Alejandro Bedoya could often be seen playing too far inside, which crowded out what little space Bradley already had to work with.

With DaMarcus Beasley and Fabian Johnson unable to get forward with the desired effect, the American attack lacked fluidity that should come from having options out on the flanks at all times.

Having the two wide men in the diamond create that space near the sideline is great, but only if it is taken advantage of by the full-backs.

That dynamic is worth keeping an eye on today.

The Quality of the Opponent

With all due respect to Azerbaijan, Turkey should prove to be a good deal tougher for the Americans to overcome.

The fact that they are unlikely to drop 11 men behind the ball and simply hold out for a nil-nil draw makes that statement immediately accurate.

Klinsmann's defense, cobbled together more so than he would like, will be tested. Any lingering concerns over Matt Besler in the heart of the back-four could very well come to roost today.

Foreboding as that sounds, it should be seen as a positive as the team continues to work towards playing in the proverbial 'Group of Death' against the likes of Kevin Prince-Boateng, Mesut Ozil and a certain Portuguese winger who has proven somewhat adept at scoring goals throughout his career.

Better to learn about any potential weaknesses now, rather than later.

"With Turkey we have a team now on a very high level, a team that almost qualified [for the World Cup] as well with very good individual players,"€ said Klinsmann on Friday. "€œTurkey is an unpredictable team; it's a team with a lot of individual skills in there. Good players that can make a difference in half a second. And they will challenge us. We wanted to start off [our pre-World Cup friendlies] kind of on an easy foot and now with Turkey we really have a benchmark that will really give us some insight of things."

How the Americans deal with the likes of Nuri Sahin pulling the strings in midfield and Galatasaray striker Burak Yilmaz up front could provide a telling glimpse into how things will go in Brazil.

The States' back-four, still very much a work in progress, will be attacked in a way Azerbaijan had no real interest in doing.

Can they withstand the pressure against an opponent who, despite missing out on the tournament after a disappointing qualifying campaign, are very much of World Cup calibre?