With a single towering header, Cameron Carter-Vickers announced his arrival on the international stage with heralding trumpets.
Headed into the 2015 CONCACAF U20 Championship, Carter-Vickers was something of an unknown. He’d only recently been pulled into U.S. Soccer’s orbit, and he had yet to participate in a major competitive tournament in a U.S. shirt. Carter-Vickers had been identified at the previous year’s IMG Cup with Tottenham’s youth team. And, at 17, he won himself a starting gig for the 2015 World Cup qualifiers.
In hindsight, Carter-Vickers’ headed goal off a corner in the opener of the tournament against Guatemala was a signal flare. He went on to have an impressive tournament, wowed at the ensuing U20 World Cup and established himself as a primary candidate to ascend to the senior team. Provided England doesn’t attempt to swoop on him, a cap at this point seems like an eventuality.
This tournament is a notorious kingmaker for young Americans. It’s the second-biggest stage of the U20 cycle, and the relatively softer competition compared to the World Cup provides players an opportunity to mark out a niche, not only for future national team calls but for their respective clubs (and, as is more rarely the case, on their college sides).
These five players have a serious opportunity and tons at stake ahead in Costa Rica, where action for the Americans kicks off Feb. 18 against Panama in Tibas.
