“All aboard the Gedion Zelalem hype train!”
That’s right. The U-20 U.S. national team battered New Zealand 4-0 down under on Tuesday to book their spot in the knockout stages of the World Cup and at the center of their stunning display was Arsenal’s youngster Gedion Zelalem.
[ RELATED: Wenger on Zelalem’s future ]
Zelalem, 18, recently switched his national team allegiance from Germany to the U.S. and everyone was pretty excited about it.
Now, we are starting to see exactly why. Sure, the U.S. were cruising against New Zealand and it is okay to try tricks like these... but trying them and actually pulling them off is another thing. Fans of the USMNT were trying their best to be cautiously optimistic but the more you see of Zelalem, the more you realize he is a special talent.
Zelalem first performed a sweeping nutmeg on a bamboozled New Zealand defender and then assisted Paul Arriola for the USA’s third goal. He wasn’t finished there though, as the German-born central midfielder crossed in a rabona which the U.S. somehow failed to finish off as New Zealand cleared.
ProSoccerTalk spoke to Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger recently about his plans for Zelalem and it is clear that he has a big future ahead of him. Many Arsenal fans are starting to chat about him becoming “the next Cesc Fabregas” which may seem a little premature but skills like these below will get fans of the Gunners and the U.S. national team thinking they have a superstar in waiting.
First up, here’s the sweeping nutmeg...
This guy has outrageous skills: http://t.co/XPhkA0UNE2 https://t.co/clgRdwsuA0
— Metro Sport (@Metro_Sport) June 2, 2015
A tidy assist to Arriola for the USA’s third goal...
Then, he saved the best to last with this rabona...
Zelalem casually pulling off a rabona for the US U20s pic.twitter.com/HCSoVJyqs3
— Passenal (@Passenal1) June 2, 2015