UK: 18+ USA: 21+ | Begambleaware.org | T&Cs apply | Play Responsibly
Football was always popular in the United States, just a different kind of football. The one where you carry an egg-shaped ball with your hands, and you kick it with your foot on occasion.
The ‘real’ football, or as the Americans call it, soccer, only took off in the US after the World Cup that they hosted in 1994. It was evident back then that there is room for that kind of football in the country, as the World Cup saw huge crowds, 70 thousand on average.
A year earlier, Major League Soccer was started, and in almost three decades it ascended into a popular league that a lot of people can enjoy. Over the years, the US has developed talented young players who then moved to Europe to further their careers. Now, we can see American players in some of the best teams in the world, and one of those players is Christian Pulisic.
Pulisic is, by far, the biggest star that the US has, and he will be their ‘marked’ man in Qatar. He was recruited by Borussia Dortmund when he was only 16 years old, and a year later joined the German side’s senior squad. Later, as Borussia tends to do, they sold him to Chelsea where he is still finding his game, in the toughest competition in the world, the Premier League.
Pulisic is only 24 years of age, but he already has 52 caps for his country with 21 goals scored. He is the current team’s third most-capped player after DeAndre Yedlin and Kellyn Acosta.
USA looking to shock England
Christian Pulisic is not the only player that the US will depend upon at the World Cup, there is a lot more talent in the squad. Weston McKennie has been given improved chances at Juventus, while Giovanni Reyna is developing, just like Pulisic, in Borussia Dortmund.
One player to watch is Timothy Weah from Ligue 1 side Lille. If the last name sounds familiar, well, you are not wrong. He is the son of the legendary Liberian striker George Weah who once played for PSG and AC Milan, among other clubs. George is currently the President of Liberia, and if you are wondering why his son is playing for the United States, the reason is, that he was born in Brooklyn.
Brenden Aaronson went through a highly successful youth program at Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg before getting transferred to Leeds United. Sergino Dest is a former Barcelona player and is currently on loan playing for AC Milan. He is another young talent that will represent the USA in Qatar.
The Qatar World Cup will be the 11th appearance for the USA in the biggest football tournament in the world, they had a streak of seven straight appearances before being unable to advance into the World Cup four years ago.
The United States is placed in a group alongside one of the favorites of the tournament England, with Ghana, and Wales taking the other two spots.
Pulisic and his team will be aiming to get at least past the group stage, with England being the favorite, playing against Iran and Wales will give them a chance to see the playoffs.
Subscribe to Punditfeed on Google News for all the latest updates from the world of sports!
