Not many players are able to find the back of the net on their professional debuts. U.S. U-18 Men’s National Team forward Charlie Kelman did not follow that that trend on Saturday.
Kelman scored a wonder-goal on his pro debut for English third-tier side Southend United despite a 3-2 loss to Plymouth Argyle.
The 17-year-old chipped the Plymouth keeper from inside his own half which sent the home fans bonkers in the League One clash.
David Beckham? Wayne Rooney? No, this comes from @SkyBetLeagueOne!
17-year-old @CharlieKelman0 scores from the halfway line for @SUFCRootsHall 😱#EFLonQuest at 9pm… @SUFC_fans @SUFC_History pic.twitter.com/L4STovYWSa
— Quest (@QuestTV) January 12, 2019
Kelman, born in Essex, played for the U.S. U-18’s last year and now qualifies to play for the United States.
Southend manager Chris Powell stated that Kelman was a “real livewire for us and obviously he’s scored a wonderful goal.” After an amazing debut for Southend, Kelman praised the club for giving him his first opportunity via social media.
Thank you to all the staff @SUFCRootsHall and @SUFCYouth for believing in me and giving me this opportunity at such a young age I couldn’t be more grateful I won’t stop here and @DruYearwood 50 appearances congrats !❤️
— Charlie Kelman (@CharlieKelman0) January 12, 2019
Southend, are currently 12th in the EFL League One and next travel to Bradford City on Jan. 19th.
Haha, that was a bit more than a “chip”!
Lovely goal indeed!
Was not even read
cap tie him ASAP if he’s at all interested in playing for the USA
I was waiting for someone to make the suggestion to call him up in March, but to suggest calling him to a cap tieing event such as the GC or Nations League goes a step further.
Horrible writing. For those of you wondering…..Kelman’s father is a US citizen. Kelman was born in England but lived in the US for 6 year, in the Dallas area, before returning to the UK with his family. Not 100% sure but I think he played some for the FC Dallas Academy at one point. Always, Kelman has lit up the youth ranks at Southend and is regarded as a very bright talent in the UK. Rumor has it that some Premier League and Championship sides have been following him for a while. The US was alerted to his eligibility by Southend last spring. Kudos to them. He’s one to keep an eye on this spring . Hopefully Tab Ramos is watching, too.
Thanks. I see the writer has since removed the comment about Kelman living with his dad for 6 years.
So where is his father from? Or where did he live with his father to get US eligibility?