PHILADELPHIA – Coming up through the New York Red Bulls academy, Matthew Olosunde didn’t know Matt Miazga too well personally but considered him a “a good player to look up to.”
Miazga also knew a little bit about Olosunde, a hot prospect three years younger than him.
Several years later, after both made huge jumps to top clubs in England, the two Matts from New Jersey were happy to reconnect this week, not far from where they grew up, at a youth-heavy US national team camp in Philadelphia.
“It’s good a lot of guys are coming from the Red Bull academy,” Miazga told MLSsoccer.com ahead of Monday’s friendly vs. Bolivia at Talen Energy Stadium (6:30 pm ET | FS1, UniMás, UDN). “It shows the Red Bull academy is one of the best in the country and keeps producing top players.”
While Miazga – a 22-year-old Chelsea center back coming of a successful season on loan with Dutch club Vitesse – arrived at camp as one of the team’s most heralded young players, Olosunde is far more untested.
The 20-year-old fullback, who has been playing with the reserves at Manchester United since 2016, was one of three players to earn his first call-up to a USMNT camp, along with Keaton Parks and Alejandro Guido.
“It’s really more about getting to know him as a player,” interim US coach Dave Sarachan said. “I’ve followed Matt and tracked him a little bit and we know that he is a local guy, and it worked out well in terms of positionally and our needs for this week. It’s a good opportunity for him to get a taste of it at this level. At the end of this week, we’ll have a better picture of what he’s all about.”
Sarachan admitted that Olosunde seemed nervous during the first day of training Monday before settling in and getting more comfortable. Still, it was hard for the US coaches to get an initial read on him.
“He’d be a good poker player,” Sarachan said. “He doesn’t reveal much. He sort of keeps a steady keel. But I think inside, he’s very excited.”
Olosunde in action at Manchester United.
Olosunde is certainly excited, calling it a “pretty big surprise” to get a call-up, especially after he said injuries stunted his development at Manchester United this past season. What was the message he took away from such a nice surprise?
“Things can happen unexpectedly – great things can happen unexpectedly,” the soft-spoken 20-year old said. “And you just have to make sure you’re prepared for it, make sure you can take it and grasp the opportunity.”
Olosunde – who grew up as a winger before moving to fullback a few years ago with the US youth national teams – said it’s “comforting” to have other players his age at camp, including star Christian Pulisic, who he remembers playing against in a PA Classics youth tournament. The Trenton, New Jersey, native has also enjoyed being so close to home again.
“I got to see my parents as soon as I landed,” Olosunde said. “They came to visit. It was really welcoming and warming to be here, in this environment.”
Miazga, who grew up in Clifton, New Jersey, agreed with that sentiment, saying he has a lot of tickets to distribute to family members for Monday’s game.
“I was back here for Christmas but there’s nothing like good ol’ America,” he said.
Of course, it’s been his time overseas – complete with a goal in a playoff Saturday to help Vitesse earn a spot in the Europa League – that helped stiffen Miazga’s resolve and accelerate his growth. Now, the former Red Bulls defender hopes to carry over his good form and be a key part of “the next generation of USMNT players” that can help the program overcome the failure of missing this summer’s World Cup and charge into a new era together.
“We have good chemistry,” Miazga said. “We get along on and off the pitch and hopefully now we can continue to establish ourselves and make an impact with the senior national team.”
It remains to be seen whether Olosunde will be a part of that young core. But the 20-year-old knows Miazga’s path is proof of what can happen, and he’s glad his own path originated from the same place.
“It was a big part of where I’m at now,” Olosunde said of the Red Bulls academy. “They really helped bring me forward and develop me, and a lot of people I met there pushed me to become better.”
