- Title: Englishman Dwyer hopes citizenship will lead to US national team
- Date: 18th January 2017
- Summary: MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JANUARY 17, 2017) (REUTERS) DWYER SEATED FOR INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPORTING KANSAS CITY FORWARD DOM DWYER, SAYING: "I want to challenge myself and I want to see how far I can go with this, see what level I can play at. And, you know, whether it's in Europe, Champions League or whatever, I'll just ride the wave and see, you know. But like right now, I'm playing the MLS for Kansas City, working hard and then we'll see what happens from there but really I've got to get myself established here first." MORE OF DWYER SEATED WITH REPORTER
- Embargoed: 1st February 2017 22:25
- Keywords: Dom Dwyer MLS Kansas City
- Location: MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES/MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA/KANSAS CITY, KANSAS, UNITED STATES/FOXBOROUGH, MASSECHUSSETS, UNITED STATES
- City: MANHATTAN BEACH, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES/MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA/KANSAS CITY, KANSAS, UNITED STATES/FOXBOROUGH, MASSECHUSSETS, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Soccer,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA0045ZM12DB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:English-born Major League Soccer forward Dominic Dwyer expects to move closer to a call-up to the United States national team after revealing he will apply for U.S. citizenship next month.
The 26-year-old from Sussex was part of Norwich City's youth teams but suffered a series of injuries and moved to the United States on a scholarship in 2009.
He was drafted by Sporting Kansas City in 2012 and has scored 53 goals in 113 appearances for the club.
"So February 14th I will have my green card for five years, and then we'll file the paperwork and start working on the process and try and get my passport and my eligibility and then we'll see," Dwyer told Reuters at MLS's annual media day in Manhattan Beach, California, on Tuesday (January 17).
"You know, obviously, the dream as a kid is play for England, that's always the dream, ask any English guy growing up. But this has been my home for the last eight or nine years now and if I can give something back to this country that's gave a lot to me then it would be an absolute honor," added the striker who has already spoken to the U.S. Soccer Federation about the process of playing for the national team.
While it was not uncommon for British-born players to feature for the United States in the earlier years of the growth of soccer in the country, there have been few examples of late with many of the dual-nationals now coming from Germany or Mexico.
Dwyer's performances in MLS have brought him to the attention of European clubs but he said that for the moment he was focused on winning with Kansas City.
"I want to challenge myself and I want to see how far I can go with this, see what level I can play at. And, you know, whether it's in Europe, Champions League or whatever, I'll just ride the wave and see, you know," said Dwyer.
"But like right now, I'm playing the MLS for Kansas City, working hard and then we'll see what happens from there but really I've got to get myself established here first," he added. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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