Derby County midfielder Duane Holmes impresses on debut for USA in Jamaica clash

Wakefield-raised footballer Duane Holmes produced an impressive debut performance for the United States of America, despite his team suffering a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Jamaica yesterday, Wednesday.

By Mark Berry

Published 6th Jun 2019, 11:06 GMT

The 24-year-old former Huddersfield Town and Scunthorpe United player was called up by Gregg Berhalter for the game at Audi Field, Washington DC, which represented an opportunity for the USMNT side to warm-up for their forthcoming campaign in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The Americans were below par and Shamar Nicholson's spectacular strike on the hour gave Jamaica the victory but Holmes' display after coming on from the substitutes' bench six minutes later was a highlight and boosted his chances of a call-up to the Gold Cup squad.

“I thought he [Holmes] performed well tonight.", said Berhalter, who also admitted that his team needs to improve ahead of their next warm-up game against Venezuela on Sunday.

Holmes, who was born in Columbus, Georgia, and moved to Wakefield at a young age, impressed in his first season at Pride Park last season, when he made 32 appearances in all competitions and scored two goals.