USYNT U17: DMV Call-Ups and Players To Keep An Eye On

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week, the United States Youth Under-17 National Team will kick off play in the Vaclav Jezek Tournament in the Czech Republic. The USYNT will face Slovakia (9/21, 10am EST), Germany (9/23, 10am EST), and the Czech Republic (9/25, 5am EST) in what is essentially preparation for CONCACAF World Cup Qualification in February.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here is a look at some of the players from the Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virginia region that received a call-up and a couple of players to keep an eye on for future call-ups. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>DMV Call-Up To Keep An Eye On</em></strong>: <strong><em>Midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='11561' first='Aaron' last='Heard'] (St. Louis</em> <em>City SC</em></strong>/ <strong><em>Fairfax, VA</em></strong><em><strong>)</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnWvGurs1xs","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnWvGurs1xs </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Although Heard currently plays for St. Louis City SC, he is originally from Fairfax, Virginia and played his youth club soccer at Bethesda Soccer Academy in Maryland (He also previously played for the Columbus Crew academy prior to joining St. Louis). As a left winger, he has torn through defenses at both the Academy and MLS Next Pro levels, using quick tight movements to break down defenders with relative ease. In five matches this season at the MLS Next Pro level, he has started twice and has a successful passing rate of 63%. He is one of the younger players in this group so it will be interesting to see how he does against opponents who are at the U18 level (the Vaclav Jezek tournament is a U18 tournament).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Future Call-Up To Keep An Eye On</em></strong>: <strong><em>Defender [player_tooltip player_id='11783' first='Matai' last='Akinmboni'] (D.C. United/Upper Marlboro, MD)</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtgVXsUmrac","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtgVXsUmrac </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Akinmboni just signed a Homegrown contract with United and has received significant playing time with their USL Championship affiliate Loudoun United. The 15 year old has excellent marking abilities on the backline, giving attackers little space to create chances. He is already 6'2" and shown that he can handle the physicality of playing against older opponents, which will help him for both club and country. He was just called into the U17 camp that was held in California so USYNT Head Coach Gonzalo Segares clearly has him on his radar ahead of World Cup Qualification (He is also eligible to play for Ghana and Nigeria). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Future Call-Up To Keep An Eye On</em></strong>: <strong><em>Midfielder [player_tooltip player_id='11702' first='Ignacio' last='Alem']</em></strong> (<strong><em>D.C. United/Bethesda, MD</em></strong>)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like Akinmboni, Alem played for United's U16 Academy during their MLS Next Cup title run last season. Since then, he has skyrocketed up the Academy depth chart, playing five matches for Loudoun United in USL Championship and being selected to participate in the MLS Next All-Star Game. The 16 year old has fluorished in limited time in the Championship, using his speed and quickness to create attacking opportunities for the home side. The MLS Next Cup Golden Boot winner could give the USYNT U17s just the attacking spark that they need heading into qualification. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Future Call-Up</em> <em>To Keep An Eye On: Attacking Midfielder Xavier Tanyi (Bethesda Academy/ Kensington, MD)</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkYppuWA1SA","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkYppuWA1SA </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tanyi captained Bethesda Academy U17's recent 3-1 win over their rivals at United, using his expert decision-making to control the pace of the match. His ability to read defenses and make precision passes down the flanks makes him a real talent for the USYNT pool. He can also play on the outside as well, but has shown a real knack in coordinating with the defense, a skill that many his age are still learning how to manage. Leadership skills are difficult to come by at this range but Tanyi has shown at one of the toughest programs in the country that he can handle anything thrown at him.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Future Call-Up To Keep An Eye On:</em></strong> <strong><em>Forward Salif Leintu (Bethesda Academy/ Bethesda, MD)</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5p0AOd-k6CMu0026t=204s","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5p0AOd-k6CM&amp;t=204s </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another product of the Bethesda Academy program. Leintu possesses excellent speed and a fantastic first touch. His movement, both inside and outside of the box, provides nightmares for defenders and he is unafraid to take a shot from distance. With the USYNT still struggling to find strikers at this </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->