New York City FC will be represented by four members of the club on the U.S. Under-17 national team that will compete in the Under-17 World Cup in Brazil later this month.
Three players and one coach have been named to the final roster that was released by U.S. Soccer Thursday.
Joe Scally, Tayvon Gray and Andres Jasson were called into head coach Raphael Wicky’s team. That trio played important roles in NYCFC’s back-to-back U-19 U.S. Soccer Development Academy National Championship winning seasons in 2018 and 2019.
“We’re very proud to have three players representing NYCFC at the upcoming U-17 World Cup in Brazil,” City sporting director Claudio Reyna said. “A lot of the credit goes to the players, their parents and our Academy staff in helping them grow into the talents they are. I’m excited to see their potential on display at the U-17 World Cup and beyond.”
Scally, a Lake Grove, N.Y. native, signed a Homegrown contract with NYCFC in 2018. At the time of the signing, he was the second-youngest player to sign a professional contract in Major League Soccer behind Freddy Adu. The right-back made his competitive debut for the club in the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup as a substitute for David Villa.
Gray, a defender from the Bronx, has been involved for club and country in the past few years. Along with Scally, he helped the U-17 National Team qualify for this fall’s World Cup. The defensive duo started along the back line in the 2019 Concacaf U-17 Championships final against Mexico.
Jasson, an attacking player who hails from Greenwich, Conn. was named the 2019 NYCFC Academy player of the year earlier this month. He and Gray were involved in the U.S. U-17 side for the 4 Nations Tournament in September — the team’s final official international matches before the World Cup.
NYCFC Boys Academy U-19 head coach Matt Pilkington will be part of the U.S. team’s coaching staff. Pilkington has led the team to back-to-back USSDA National Championships and to a strong showing at the 2019 Dallas Cup where the U-19s defeated English club Liverpool FC.
“Matt being part of the World Cup staff is a credit to his work over the past couple of years,” Reyna said. “He’s been one of the leaders in our Academy and has done a great job developing players, but more importantly, developing young men. He knows this age group very well, having coached with and against many of the players in the squad. He’ll bring a lot of experience to Raphael Wicky and the rest of the coaching staff. It’s an incredible opportunity for him and we love seeing our coaches invited into national team camps and gain experience with U.S. Soccer.
“We’re excited for all of them and we wish them the best of luck in Brazil.”
The U.S. kicks off their group stage matches on Oct. 27 against Senegal Oct. 27, play Japan Oct. 30 and finish with the Netherlands Nov. 2.
The U.S. roster is made up of 19 players born in 2002 and two born in 2003. Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2002 are eligible for the 2019 U-17 World Cup.
The roster (Club; Hometown; U-17 Caps/Goals)
GOALKEEPERS (3): 21-Aaron Cervantes (Orange County SC; Chino Hills, Calif.; 4/0), 1-Damian Las (Fulham/ENG; Norridge, Ill.; 19/0), 12-Chituru Odunze (Leicester City/ENG; London, England; 7/0)
DEFENDERS (7): 15-Sebastian Anderson (Colorado Rapids; Highlands Ranch, Colo.; 4/0), 13-Adam Armour (North Carolina FC; Cary, N.C.; 18/0), 3-George Bello (Atlanta United FC; Douglasville, Ga.; 8/1), 4-Nicolas Carrera (FC Dallas; Frisco, Texas; 3/0), 14-Tayvon Gray (New York City FC; Bronx, N.Y.; 17/0), 5-Kobe Hernandez-Foster (LA Galaxy; Los Angeles, Calif.; 23/3), 2-Joe Scally (New York City FC; Lake Grove, N.Y.; 19/1)
MIDFIELDERS (5): 18-Maximilian Dietz (Freiburg/GER; Frankfurt, Germany; 2/0), 17-Ethan Dobbelaere (Seattle Sounders FC; Seattle, Wash.; 3/0), 8-Bryang Kayo (Orange County SC; Poolesville, Md.; 8/1), 6-Daniel Leyva (Seattle Sounders FC; Las Vegas, Nev.; 7/0), 16-Adam Saldana (LA Galaxy; Panorama City, Calif.; 25/2)
FORWARDS (6): 7-Gianluca Busio (Sporting Kansas City; Greensboro, N.C.; 15/7), 20-Andres Jasson (New York City FC; Greenwich, Conn.; 11/1), 19-Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez (Seattle Sounders FC; Merced, Calif.; 24/9), 9-Ricardo Pepi (FC Dallas; McKinney, Texas; 15/5), 10-Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund/GER; Bedford, N.Y.; 15/8), 11-Griffin Yow (D.C. United; Clifton, Va.; 12/7)
