US to play Belgium in World Cup qualifier warm-up

The US football team will begin preparing for three June World Cup qualifiers with a May 29 friendly against Belgium in Cleveland, writes Sporting News’s Brian Straus. The friendly has been rumoured for some time and is expected to be the first of two games the Americans will play before the qualifiers. The US also is finalising plans to play Germany, the home of national coach Jurgen Klinsmann, on June 2. The US has never played host to Belgium, though the countries have met four times and the Belgians have won the past three. The most recent meeting was in September 2011 in Brussels, where the US lost 1-0 in Klinsmann’s third game in charge. The only US victory came at the inaugural World Cup in 1930, where they won 3-0 on their way to a spot in the semi-finals. Belgium is a “team on the rise”, according to Klinsmann. The Red Devils, ranked 19th in the world, currently lead their World Cup qualification group and feature players like Marouane Fellaini, (Everton), Simon Mignolet (Sunderland), Moussa Dembélé and Jan Vertonghen (both Tottenham Hotspur). They will be preparing for a qualifier against Serbia on June 7. US midfielder Sacha Kljestan plays for Brussels side Anderlecht and was a key contributor to the club’s 2011-12 Jupiler League title.