First Matchup as FC Tulsa Teammates Comes Against the USMNT on Thursday
COLUMBUS, Ohio – As El Salvador gears up to take on the USMNT in the pen-ultimate window of FIFA World Cup Qualifying on Thursday night, two members of the FC Tulsa roster will be representing club and country with the eyes of both the United States and El Salvador upon them.
Forward Joaquín Rivas and defender Ronald Rodríguez, one of FC Tulsa’s new singings announced last week, have been named to the “La Selecta” roster as El Salvador matches up with the U.S., Honduras, and Canada over the next nine days. The duo shared the pitch 13 times for El Salvador in 2021 and the chemistry will only continue to improve as they share a locker room with their national team and club team moving forward.
Rodríguez first debuted for his international club last June during the Group Stage of World Cup Qualifying and quickly cemented himself in the Starting XI for “La Selecta,” amassing 18 caps and starting every match he appeared in. The center-back has scored once for his country as well, finding the back of the net in his third national appearance against Saint Kitts and Nevis on June 12.
Rivas’ tenure with El Salvador spans back to 2018, but the forward became a Salvadorian sensation in 2021 with regular starts coming his way beginning in World Cup Qualifying back in March. He has capped 24 times with three assists and four goals, three of which came in the 2021 Gold Cup. In El Salvador’s quarterfinal match vs. Qatar, Rivas subbed on in the 71’ minute and scored both the equalizer and match-winner for his country, a performance that has been permanently etched in the minds of “La Selecta” fans for years to come.
Rivas and Rodríguez will be making the nearly 3,000-mile trip from sunny El Salvador to frigid Columbus, Ohio on Thursday, January 27 to take on Christian Pulisic, Weston McKinnie, and the rest of the United States Men’s National Team. It will mark the second meeting between the two nations in 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifying, the first of which ended in a 0-0 draw to begin the qualifying round for both squads.
Kickoff from Lower.com Field in Columbus is set for 6:00 p.m. CT on ESPN2.
