Yunus Musah's USMNT call-up and Valencia starting role are no fluke
Yunus Musah had taken a circuitous route to be where he is, but he’s put his foot down and sped off fast and straight, accelerating directly into history. A Ghanaian England youth international born in New York, raised in Castelfranco Veneto near Venice, Italy, and in Barking, east London, he raced across the field of the Mestalla in Spain, hitting 20.8 mph (33.5 kph) as he ran. There was just one thing on his mind.
“I can see a marker behind me and I see [Denis] Cheryshev but I keep going and keep going,” he said. “The only thing in my head is the goal.”
Picking up the ball inside his own half, a huge gap appeared before him and he headed straight into it, not stopping until, 50 metres further on, with everyone trailing miles behind, his shot took the ball past David Soria and him into the record books. His shout broke the silence and his teammates eventually caught up with him, embracing him. When they dispersed, he knelt down, head on the turf, and prayed.
In 79 years, no one younger had scored for Valencia, and it had only happened once in their whole history. No overseas player has ever done so. He was 17 years, 338 days old, and already a regular at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.
– Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U.S. only)
– MLS on ESPN+: Stream LIVE games and replays (U.S. only)
– ESPN+ viewer’s guide: Bundesliga, Serie A, MLS, FA Cup and more
“Incredible,” Musah called it, and it was. “It’s incredible to be such a young age and score at a club with such history.”
Life comes at you fast — or at least it does when you’re going at that speed. A few days later, the call came to join the United States men’s national team, who had been following him closely for a while. Nico Estevez, assistant to U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter, had worked at Valencia and helped build communication between the club and with Musah’s family.
“One thing I’m careful about is that I always want to know the players’ connection to the United States,” Berhalter said…
Read the Original Article on Source Page
#Yunus #Musahs #USMNT #callup #Valencia #starting #role #fluke
callup, fluke, Musahs, role, starting, United States, USMNT, Valencia, Yunus, Yunus Musah
General
0 Post a Comment:
Post a Comment