Nico Estévez: "I see a great future ahead for Yunus Musah"

Following Yunus Musah's friendly debut for the United States on Thursday night, VCF Media caught up with former Valencia CF coach Nico Estévez -now assistant for the USMNT- to talk about the teenager's progress and international call-up.

"We have been working on attracting Yunus to the US national team for a long time. We think he has a lot of potential and, like many young players, you never know when they are going to break out," said Estévez.

"In his case, he had the opportunity to undertake preseason with the Valencia CF first team and he took advantage of his chance very well. He showed his quality and his ability. That let us know that he was ready to break out, and that he had the ability to play for us."

Musah had been on the radar for a long time, and it seemed inevitable that he would impress.

"We had been following everything he had been doing at Valencia CF. We had also looked at him in his time at Arsenal. We know that when you change country it becomes more difficult, and last year he had an injury as well. All the changes that have taken place at Valencia CF made it easier for us to follow him and see how well he was doing. We decided to contact both him and his family more frequently," said  the coach. "From the first moment we talked to them, they saw that it was a good opportunity for him. We are very happy."

As well as the player, Estévez and the USMNT have also been impressed by the person.

"He is a kid who is always smiling and is very nice. He always transmits positive energy. He is mature and wants to do well. He does everything possible to take care of himself, to get enough rest, to be focused on his work in order to achieve his personal goals."

"When a young player bursts through, it can be a surprise, but he had already transmitted his potential. With these young players, the important thing is that they have the potential, and from there the minutes in which to show their quality. This is just the beginning, because I see a great future for him."

"We are seeing the emergence of many young players in the United States team. It's something we talked about with Yunus and he was attracted to it. Yesterday we had an average age of 21.9, and  many new faces. In Yunus' case, the important thing is that he is well balanced. He knows that you can make mistakes, that he is going to have games in which not everything will turn out well, and that mentality helps you face any situation," said Estévez.