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Fulham midfielder
Emerson Hyndman |
Fans of the US national team got a glimpse of the future in their side's 1-0 win over the Czech Republic on Wednesday, when 18-year-old Fulham midfielder Emerson Hyndman entered the match for the final 20 minutes to make his senior international bow.
The grandson of former FC Dallas head coach Schellas Hyndman, the Texas-native has been at Craven Cottage since 2011, only earning his professional debut at the beginning of this season, but has since started three Championship games in Felix Magath's youthful lineup.
His performances clearly caught the eye of US head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who, in picking an experimental 22-man squad for the friendly in Prague, with veteran goalkeeper Nick Rimando the lone MLS representative, opted to make the teenager the youngest member on the roster.
There were five other uncapped names among the group, with Cody Cropper, Greg Garza, Joe Gyau, Rubio Rubin and Jordan Morris also included - the latter having the chance to become the first college-based player to appear for the senior side since Ante Razov in 1995.
Gyau and Garza were the only ones to make their debuts alongside Hyndman on the night, with the US sealing a narrow victory thanks to a 39th-minute Alejandro Bedoya goal, but it was the introduction of the promising Cottagers playmaker which really had people talking.
Tipped to become a central part of the setup during the Russia 2018 World Cup cycle, supporters were rightly excited to see him given a brief chance to impress and, as the reaction shows, big things are expected from this point forward.