U.S. U-18 Men’s Youth National Team heading to Japan for friendly tournament

CHICAGO – The U.S. Under-18 Men’s Youth National Team will head to Niigata, Japan to compete in the 26th International Youth Football Tournament from Sept. 7-17.

U.S. U-19 MYNT head coach Michael Nsien will lead the training camp as the USA is set to face a local Niigata Select team on Sept. 12, Japan on Sept. 14 and Peru on Sept. 16. Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2007 are age-eligible for this new one-year U-18 MYNT cycle and all 20 players called up were born in 2007.

The roster features players from 12 Major League Soccer clubs, led by three players from Inter Miami CF. Additionally, two players each come from Atlanta United FC, FC Cincinnati, LA Galaxy and Orlando City SC.

U.S. U-18 MYNT ROSTER – 26TH INTERNATIONAL YOUTH FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT – JAPAN

GOALKEEPERS (2): Zackory Campagnolo (Colorado Rapids; Fort Myers, Fla.), Kayne Rizvanovich (FC Cincinnati; Mettawa, Ill.)

DEFENDERS (6): Andrew Baiera (New York City FC; Darien, Conn.), Tristan Brown (Columbus Crew; Novi, Mich.), Nicholas De Almeida (Inter Miami CF; Boynton Beach, Fla.), Jose Magana Jr. (LA Galaxy; Long Beach, Calif.), Harbor Miller (LA Galaxy; Brea, Calif.), Neil Pierre (Philadelphia Union; Hersey, Pa.)

MIDFIELDERS (6): Colin Guske (Orlando City SC; Saint Johns, Fla.), Darius Lane (Brighton Hove Albion/ENG; London, England), Santiago Morales (Inter Miami CF; Weston, Fla.), Axel Perez (Olympique Lyon; Miami, Fla.), Jonathan Shore (New York City FC; New York, N.Y.), Adyn Torres (Atlanta United FC; Silver Springs, Md.)

FORWARDS (6): Stefan Chirila (FC Cincinnati; Allentown, Pa.), Justin Ellis (Orlando City SC; Wellington, Fla.), Aiden Hezarkhani (Real Salt Lake; Irvine, Calif.), Leonardo Orejarena (North Texas SC; Chicago, Ill.), Daniel Pinter (Inter Miami CF; Boca Raton, Fla.), Santiago Pita (Atlanta United FC; Atlanta, Ga.)

SCHEDULE

Sept. 12
USA vs. Niigata Select – 3 p.m. local
Niigata Seiro Sports Center Albillage; Seiro, Niigata, Japan

Sept. 14
USA vs. Japan – 3 p.m. localShibata-shi Ijimino Koen Athletic Field; Shibata, Niigata, Japan

Sept. 16
USA vs. Peru – 5:30 p.m. local
Denka Big Swan Stadium; Niigata, Japan

ADDITIONAL NOTES

• Two players represented the U.S. at the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Indonesia, helping the U.S. reach the knockout stage before falling to eventual champion Germany: goalkeeper Zackory Campagnolo and midfielder Santiago Morales.
• It’s the first training camp of the U-18 MYNT cycle after this age group participated in three training camps during the one-year U-17 MYNT cycle. Defenders Andrew Baiera and Nicholas De Almeida as well as midfielders Jonathan Shore and Adyn Torres were called to all three camps.
• Six players are on MLS Homegrown contracts: Andrew Baiera, Stefan Chirila, Harbor Miller, Morales, Shore and Torres.
• The USA’s match vs. Peru will be played at Denka Big Swan Stadium, which served as a host venue for the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and Korea Republic.