For all of you on board the ‘Julian Green for the U.S. national team’ bandwagon, get ready to kick it up a few gears.
It seems like the Bayern Munich youngster is incredibly serious about representing the U.S. national team, and will be heading to the U.S. for a training camp with Jurgen Klinsmann’s team in April.
On Tuesday 18-year-old Green spoke with SI.com’s Grant Wahl, as it was confirmed that Jurgen Klinsmann’s request for Green to train with the USMNT squad in Glendale, Ariz., before facing Mexico on April 2, had been accepted by his club.
Bayern has to make special arrangements for it to happen, as the friendly falls outside of an official FIFA international date with players from Major League Soccer likely to make up the majority of Klinsmann’s squad for the rivalry match with El Tri. When asked if he has ambitions of playing for the U.S. at this summer’s World Cup, Green had the following to say.
“Yes, I think so,” Green said. “If I can play a World Cup at 18 years old, it would be great, amazing. But I have to train hard.”
(MORE: Klinsmann hails U.S. youngster Green, how influential could he be?)
Green also confirmed that Klinsmann has mentioned the chance of him going to the World Cup but hasn’t guaranteed the Bayern youth product a spot on the plane if he picks the USA over Germany. Throughout his international youth career green has represented Germany at various level, however he has yet to decide which nation he wants to represent as a full international.
This news comes after Green already trained with the U.S. national team in Frankfurt before their friendly with Ukraine earlier in March, as Klinsmann aims to integrate the talented teenager born in Tampa, Florida.
Can Green make a charge to the World Cup squad? He’s deemed by many to be a certainty to make the U.S squad if he does pick choose to represent USMNT over Germany. What a bombshell that would be if Green, just 18, was on the plane to Brazil to represent the Stars & Stripes.