Yunush Musah has introduced his dedication to america nationwide staff transferring ahead and it was a signfiicant win for Gregg Berhalter, Brian McBride and his workers. ASN’s Brian Sciaretta is right here to supply up his ideas.
BY
Brian Sciaretta
Posted
March 15, 2021
2:00 PM
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Musah, 18, a midfielder for Valencia in La Liga was born in New York Metropolis however left when he was a younger little one. After leaving the U.S., he was raised in Italy after which England. He performed for Arsenal’s academy however then opted to start his skilled profession in Valencia.
The 2020/21 season is his first full season as a first-team skilled. It hasn’t been a easy path however at occasions he has proven some glimpses of being a rare expertise. Different occasions, like current weeks, he has struggled to play a lot on the sphere. However at 18 and in a condensed schedule, that is considerably to be anticipated.
It’s unattainable to know the way Musah will develop and mature as participant however at age 18, he’s a top-level expertise.
That is the second main twin nationwide recruiting win for Gregg Berhalter, Brian McBride, and the remainder of the management of the boys’s program. Sergino Dest was the opposite main recruit however Musah’s recruitment was probably more durable. Sure, on the time Dest introduced his dedication, he was a extra achieved membership participant than Musah having locked down the Ajax beginning spot however he additionally had a really robust relationship with U.S. Soccer stemming from being a part of the 2017 U.S. U-17 World Cup staff and the 2019 U-20 World Cup staff.
On this dedication, Musah was by no means ignored by England and was a constant presence on their youth groups. His two pleasant caps in November have been extraordinarily restricted in contrast with Dest’s historical past with U.S. Soccer. Dest opted to stick with america whereas Musah left England for the U.S. staff. There’s the argument that he noticed a troublesome highway forward of himself to play for England, however many different gamers may need opted to stick with the English program for a bit longer on the youth ranges. The U.S. made a robust sufficient case to change now.
There have been different twin nationwide’s becoming a member of just lately as properly. Andres Perea leaving Colombia’s set as much as play for the U.S. U-23 staff, Johnny Cardoso was rumored to have turned down Brazil U-20 call-ups to pursue the U.S. staff. All of those are vital and Musah suits the sample.
Listed here are my ideas on Musah’s dedication.
Huge addition within the numbers recreation
The U.S. participant pool has been getting stronger the previous two years at a gradual price. This has been primarily as a result of a mixture of a era of youngsters that likes the game greater than some other American era, can watch the game on tv and in-person, and has entry to raised teaching and home groups to hone their abilities at youthful and youthful age.
The result’s that the American participant is simply higher now. The American stars in Europe are higher and the American gamers domestically are higher. The tide has elevated.
On the flip facet, it’s nonetheless a really younger participant pool for the U.S. staff and most gamers within the pool are ages 22 and youthful. Whereas issues look promising, focusing in on anyone or two gamers at these ages is unreliable. The type of gamers ranges up and down rapidly for teenagers and gamers of their early 20s.
However, the extra proficient gamers you could have at these ages within the pool, the upper the percentages that somebody within the pool can be wholesome and enjoying properly.
The present state of the participant pool really displays this. Gamers like Gio Reyna, Christian Pulisic, and even Musah himself have hit tough patches since December. The extra the participant pool expands, the much less problematic it turns into for the U.S. staff. If Reyna or Musah aren’t enjoying properly, Brenden Aaronson may enjoying properly and may choose up the extent. Then if Aaronson hits a degree the place he’s not enjoying properly, at the moment the percentages Musah or Reyna can be again to enjoying properly – and there’ll proceed to be extra gamers rising (Caden Clark, Cameron Harper, and so on), growing, or getting back from damage like Richard Ledezma.
The U.S. nationwide staff proper now isn’t a beginning 11 or 23-player roster. It’s most likely 50 or extra gamers which might be all a part of a system. Musah is a giant addition to that and he helps makes the U.S. much less reliant on Reyna, McKennie and others everybody was relying on a lot in 2020. He’s a excessive stage participant that will increase the likelihood that higher-level expertise can be in-form always.
Expertise begets Expertise
Why did Musah make this selection? This isn’t to low cost apparent – that the U.S. staff is less complicated to make than England and that enjoying in a World Cup in 2022 is extra seemingly with this choice. It’s additionally to not low cost the large laborious work finished by Gregg Berhalter and others at U.S. Soccer who did an excellent job bringing Musah into the fold – however their job was made attainable due to current expertise.
Musah is a high-level expertise however he’s not going to change the course of the U.S. program. The U.S. program was enhancing and would have continued to enhance with out him. Musah is the reward for having an improved program.
The American soccer infrastructure had nothing to do with Musah’s improvement as a participant however by advantage of manufacturing gamers like Adams, Pulisic, McKennie, Reyna, Sargent and others, it made it simpler to carry Musah into the fold.
Expertise begets expertise and Musah is a mirrored image of that.
Tactical versatility
So far as on the sphere, Musah will seemingly begin in a central attacking midfield place – as he did in November. He performs large on the fitting facet with Valencia however prefers the center, the place the U.S. staff performs him.
On a full-strength staff proper now, he most likely performs in a midfield with Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams with Reyna and Christian Pulisic out large. But when there are accidents or continued dips in type, Musah can shift out large the place he’s now.
Musah is a starter proper now however the good factor is that competitors from inside the participant pool ought to push him – and convey out the very best in him as properly.
