All Whites coach Ricki Herbert will hand a debut to Auckland City defender Ian Hogg when they take on El Salvador in Houston, Texas, tomorrow.
Herbert is missing a handful of players for the games against El Salvador and Honduras because of injury and club commitments, including Ryan Nelsen (ankle), Winston Reid (West Ham), Chris Killen (Chongqing) Tony Lochhead (honeymoon) and Rory Fallon (pursuing coaching badges) and will field a largely young side.
Hogg will start in place of Lochhead down the left side of a four-man midfield with Leo Bertos roaming the opposite flank. Tommy Smith, Michael Boxall and Ben Sigmund will line up at the back with Marco Rojas, Shane Smeltz and Kosta Barbarouses starting up front.
The games are being used as preparation for the upcoming Oceania Nations Cup, which doubles as the first phase of World Cup qualifiers, starting in the Solomon Islands on June 1.
Likely side (3-4-3): Paston; Smith, Boxall, Sigmund; Bertos, Vicelich, McGlinchey, Hogg; Rojas, Smeltz, Barbarouses.
