Selected by U.S. MNT head coach Gregg Berhalter for the first time, Busio is the second-youngest player and one of only seven teenagers to be selected to a Gold Cup roster in U.S. history. The 23-player squad also features Kansas City native Nicholas Gioacchini, two-time World Cup veteran Brad Guzan, reigning MLS Defender of the Year Walker Zimmerman and FC Schalke 04 forward Matthew Hoppe, who scored six goals in Germany’s Bundesliga last season.
Riding a wave of momentum after beating Mexico in the Concacaf Nations League Final last month in Denver, the U.S. will look to start strong in Group B against a Haiti outfit that hammered Saint Vincent and the Grenadines last Friday and Bermuda on Tuesday in the Preliminary Round. One of Haiti’s most prominent players is winger Derrick Etienne, who notably scored for Columbus Crew SC in their 2020 MLS Cup victory over Seattle Sounders FC last December.
A North Carolina native, Busio moved to Kansas City in 2016 to join the Sporting KC Academy and has developed into one of the sport’s top teenagers since signing a Homegrown Player contract with the club at age 15 in August 2017. Busio became the second-youngest player in MLS history to record an assist (Aug. 4, 2018) and score a goal (Oct. 17, 2018) in his debut season and has eight goals and eight assists in 62 MLS appearances over the last three years.
Busio has demanded the spotlight in 2021, amassing two goals and three…
