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There are only 15 weeks left until the Olympics. Mail Sport looks ahead to the Paris Olympics with a series of interviews, flashbacks and in-depth investigations…
The Olympics are a great place for athletes from all sports to show off their skills to the world and become famous.
Among its myriad sports is soccer, with an emphasis on giving young players the chance to shine and prove their ability to become future superstars within the national team.
Recent examples include Richarlison at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Serge Gnabry at the 2016 Rio Olympics, but this year's Olympics saw Argentina win the gold medal and introduce the world to a young striker named Carlos Tevez. This is to commemorate the 20th anniversary since.
Similar expectations may not fall at the feet of the United States, but this could prove to be the best opportunity for many players to prove their worth on a future national team, or even two years later. They may even begin to claim a spot in the World Cup. After many years.
mail sports Introducing five athletes who are aiming to perform at the Paris Summer Olympics.
Gaga Slonina, goalkeeper
Chicagoland native Gabriel 'Gaga' Slonina has the potential to be the next great American goaltender, joining the likes of Brad Friedel, Casey Keller and our columnist Tim Howard.
Slonina is the only American named to Goal.com's NXGN list of the 50 Best Young Players of 2023, and the only goaltender named.
He signed with his hometown club Chicago Fire in 2013 and made his senior debut in August 2021.
After just 34 appearances during that time, Chelsea signed Slonina to a contract worth an estimated $10 million. He has been on loan at Belgian club Eupen this season and has kept four clean sheets in 28 games.
He chose to play for the United States over his grandparents' homeland of Poland and made his international debut against Serbia in January 2023. Now that he has the chance to shine on the world stage, he can prove that he made the right choice.
John Tolkien, fullback
Just like “Gaga”, the next player on the list also prefers to be called by his nickname rather than his real name.
When John Tolkien was young, his uncle gave him the nickname “JMi”, a combination of his first and middle name (John Michael). To this day, his teammates and family call him “JMi,” and he says he doesn't answer to John.
Either way, JMi is one of the most promising defensive talents in the US Olympic camp, a true modern fullback who can shut down opponents and contribute in the build-up.
New York Red Bulls were unable to let him go this winter as they considered him an important part of their team, despite rumored interest from English clubs such as Sheffield United and West Brom. There wasn't.
Fullback is a position with a lot of interesting names and faces for the future USMNT. JMi has already made four senior appearances and perhaps a good showing in Paris will ensure he remains one of the main options going forward.
Gianluca Busio, midfielder
Gianluca Busio was hailed as Sporting Kansas City's most promising player when he signed with Serie A side Venezia in 2021.
He signed a raw player contract in 2017, becoming the youngest player to sign with an MLS club since Freddie Adu.
Since then, Venice have dropped to Serie B, but Busio's quality has not diminished in the lower leagues.
He has proven himself to be more than capable as a box-to-box midfielder, and ranks among the Tylers on the U.S. Olympic team, not only for his play on the field, but also in his capacity as captain of this team. He should play a similar role to Adams.
Busio is a relatively veteran member of the USMNT, appearing in 13 games over three seasons. However, he appears to have moved on from coach Gregg Berhalter, as he has not played for him since the World Cup qualifiers in March 2022. Perhaps this summer he'll be able to prove he belongs on the USMNT more often.
Paxten Aaronson, attacking midfielder
The younger brother of Union Berlin midfielder Brenden Aaronson came from the same MLS team as his brother, the Philadelphia Union.
He currently plays for Vitesse in the Eredivisie on loan from Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt.
He has scored two goals in eight appearances in the Dutch top flight, which is much better than the one assist he achieved in just 95 minutes in the Bundesliga.
With this team, Aaronson could carve out a role similar to Gio Reyna of the USMNT. He can play wide, but is just as good as a creative engine in attack.
As for Pakuten, it seems more of an 'if' than a question of when he will join the first team. He only made one appearance for the first-team national team in the same January 2023 camp as Slonina, but he is likely to return once he has gained more experience.
Cade Cowell, Winger
The competition between the United States and Mexico over dual nationality athletes is not limited to this year's Olympic team. Still, Americans believe they've found a major gem in Cade Cowell.
It was relatively easy to convince the California native to stay in the United States, considering he represented the United States at U-16 and U-17 level before making his first-team debut.
It happened in 2021 when he was only 18 years old. Since then, he has appeared in eight games in total, including playing in every match of last summer's CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Cowell could be an indispensable asset to the United States for years to come, and Berhalter is well aware of that.
Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Timothy Ware and even Brenden Aaronson are ahead of him in the pecking order, but a strong showing in Paris could see Cowell included on the USMNT's 23-man roster more often. There is sex.
