Burnley winger Luca Koleosho could snub the USMNT as he has reportedly been asked to join the Italy national team as an injury replacement.
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Koleosho is being considered for Italy call-upWas born in the USA and represented them at youth levelsCould join Italy squad as last-minute injury replacementFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Luca Koleosho's long-awaited Italy national team call-up might be on the horizon, as (h/t Football Italia) have reported that head coach Luciano Spalletti has asked the Burnley winger to be on stand-by and fly out for the Nations League quarter-finals against Germany. Indeed, he called even be added to the squad, should an injury replacement be required for Lazio captain Mattia Zaccagni.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportTHE BIGGER PICTURE
A call-up to the Italy national team would be a significant setback for the USMNT, who would've undoubtedly benefitted from Koleosho representing them in the future.
In December 2023, NFL legend and Burnley co-owner JJ Watt spoke about convincing the 20-year-old to represent the country he was born in while speaking on the podcast: "Everybody, the brightest experts in the world – all the people on Twitter, who obviously know better than anybody else – have told me that you should play for America. My pitch to him would be to think about how incredible and how special it would be to play for your home country, to represent your home country and to do something special and to help shepherd that next wave in of what could be.
"With the Olympics and the World Cup coming to our country over the next five years or so, there are going to be some incredibly exciting times in American football coming up and you can help to be a catalyst for even more growth in the game. Wouldn’t it just be fun! Every international break, you are where you want to be."
DID YOU KNOW?
Koleosho has represented United States at U15 level, thereafter switching allegiances to feature for the Italy U19, U20, and U21 teams. He could be called up by Spalletti for the second leg against Germany on Sunday, although Roberto Piccoli or Tommaso Baldanzi could also be brought in as the Italy coach weighs up his options.
Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR LUCA KOLEOSHO?
Should Koleosho be called up for international duty, he could be in line to make his debut for the Azzurri on Sunday. Following the international break, Burnley will welcome Bristol City on March 29, with the Clarets currently third on the Championship table, just two points behind Leeds United and Sheffield United.
