Aztex Forward Shams Called up to USMNT U-23 Camp
March 22, 2015 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Austin Aztex News Release
AUSTIN, Texas (Sunday, March 22, 2015) - Newly-signed Austin Aztex forward Alfred Koroma Shams has been called to represent the U.S. Under-23 men's national team as they looks to continue their preparations in qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The squad will travel to Bosnia and Denmark to face their respective national teams at the end of March.
Joining Shams is former Aztex PDL forward Khiry Shelton. The first meeting will take place in Bosnia in March 27th in the city of Tuzla. The contest against Denmark is scheduled four days later.
With this news, Shams will be missing the beginning three games of USL regular season action. The fact is it's a win-win situation for the Aztex and Shams. It represents an opportunity for the young forward to gain more international experience, polish his skills, but most importantly, make the city of Austin proud in the young Texan.
"It's always an honor to represent my country," Shams said. "My goal in the next five to six years is to be a world class player, so having been called up to a national team camp for me means I am taking another small step towards that goal."
Before this trip, the U-23's have played two friendly matches, a 5-1 win against the Bahamas senior national team, and a 3-0 loss versus Brazil's U-23's. Shams started against Bahamas and quickly made an impression after scoring the first goal for the American squad.
U-23 Head coach Andi Herzog emphasized the importance of this business trip in the evaluation process to assemble the best team possible to face the Olympic qualifiers.
"With six months before the start of Olympic qualifying, this is an important opportunity for our coaching staff to evaluate the players first hand as we put the pieces together for October," said Herzog said earlier this month. "We are going to build understanding, build team spirit and really try to enjoy this huge opportunity we have together to reach the Olympic Games."
Looking ahead into the USL campaign, Shams figures to be a big contributor for the Aztex frontline. His skillset matches Austin's aggressive attacking style, a combination that the coaching staff hopes will pay dividends deep into the regular season.
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