The U.S. Men’s National Team’s November training camp for friendlies in Europe was already set to be a highly-anticipated affair, but word that a talented dual national teenager is set to take part who is enjoying a breakout season in La Liga has USMNT fans even more excited.
Valencia winger, and New York-born teenager Yunus Musah has accepted a call-up for the USMNT’s November training camp, The Athletic reported on Monday. The roster for the camp is set to be unveiled on Tuesday.
A 17-year-old former Arsenal youth academy product, Musah is eligible for the United States, England and Ghana, having captained England’s Under-18 team before.
A speedy midfielder who could provide some competition on the right wing in the USMNT player pool, Musah would not be cap-tied by taking part in a USMNT camp, or in the Nov. 12 friendly against Wales.
Born in New York to a Ghanaian mother who was in the reportedly on vacation in the United States, Musah spent the first nine years of his life growing up in Italy before moving to London. There he eventually joined Arsenal’s youth academy, and stayed with the club until he was 16, when he left for Valencia hoping he would be able to find first-team minutes much sooner.
That opportunity has come in the new season, as he has benefited from Valencia’s recent roster purge, and failure to make new signings as it deals with financial struggles. Musah has become a regular starter for the La Liga side, and recently scored his first senior team goal, on Sunday in a 1-1 draw with Getafe.
Musah faces stiff competition at the winger positions with the England National Team, which boasts one of the deepest collections of talented young wingers anywhere in the world, a group that includes Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Phil Foden to go with star veteran Raheem Sterling.
The USMNT does have young wingers, including Christian Pulisic, Konrad De La Fuente, Tim Weah and Ulysses Llanez, but adding Musah would only help provide more competition to a winger pool that also includes veterans Jordan Morris and Tyler Boyd.
This could be a huge coup, as he’s a player with a really high bar who could fit well into our current player pool. I’m impressed by the improvements in the scouting and recruitment process that seem to be taking place at national-team level. We’re identifying promising dual- (or multi-) nationals and doing what we can to recruit and integrate the most promising prospects into the fold. Dest was a major get for us, and each top-quality player we draw to the national team adds to the appeal for future prospects. As an analogy, the USMNT isn’t a Bayern or a Barcelona, but in identifying and giving chances to promising dual-national prospects, maybe we can make ourselves a Dortmund — a team with a few veteran leaders, but full of exciting young talent.
I’m sure we’re also looking as prospects like Folarin Balogun and Owen Otasowie, so hopefully, we’ll be in a position to make the move to bring/keep them onboard too when the time is right.
Otasowie a more important call up. In our system already and has multiple dual Nat options. Has many of the same characteristics as Musah. He will break out this year. It’s great that Musah is coming, and I hope we get him, but I really hope we don’t ignore what we already have chasing the someone else. It’s been reported hat GB rates Owen so I expect to see him. With Adams injury issues we need quality backups there, and w Owen or Musah we would have one. Cajuste could another, but he is raw comapred to these two IMO. Much farther off but I player I love we r trying to get. Soto….I’m sure he will be called. Who the hell else is there in Europe? There is Sarge then Novakovich? Sabbi? Wright? Not a group that should exclude Soto at tghis time.
Excellent size at 6ft. Great speed and strength. He looks to be playing both as a winger or as an 8. I watched two of his games and both times it was his man that scored against his team. He needs to work on not releasing from his mark just because he thinks his teammates are going to cover for him.
Interesting development….now we need to see if Soto is getting called up too…