The new Ligue 1 season will be rather different from what we are used to. The 2022 World Cup takes place in November and December meaning weeks without any league action. One of the countries that will be trying to take the World Cup away from France will be the USA. The odds are against them but they could have as many as four players who ply their trade in Ligue 1.
There is the possibility France could face the USA in the quarter finals in Qatar. It’s worth keeping an eye on the American players who could be featuring in the World Cup. Should we be betting on them to cause some upsets in Qatar?
According to offers.bet a large percentage of the American squad play outside of their country. Timothy Weah has played 25 internationals for the USA and you can bet he’ll be in the squad that goes to Qatar in November.
Weah currently plays for Marseille and before that PSG. It’s eight years since he left the New York Red Bulls to join the Parisian team. Before joining PSG, he had a trial with English Premier League side Chelsea but eventually he headed to Paris.
The odds of him choosing PSG over Chelsea weren’t that high. His father, George Weah had previously played for PSG in the 1990s. Few then would have bet he’d one day become the President of Liberia!
His son was only 14 when joining the PSG Academy but it didn’t take him long to show what he was capable of. His debut saw him score a hat-trick as his new club beat Ludogorets Razgrad 8-1 in the UEFA Youth League.
2017 saw him become a professional player and he made his first team debut for PSG the following year. With so many top players at the club, he only made five first team appearances before a loan spell at Glasgow Celtic and then in 2019 being transferred to Lille.
Hamstring injuries marred his first season at the club. He’s yet to get into double figures for goals but won’t be on his way to Southampton. He’ll be looking to get more games under his belt before the World Cup begins. Lille fans will know that he’s a player who is capable of causing any team problems and has already scored three goals for the USA.
Erik Parker-Brown also plays in Ligue 1. He’s been playing for Troyes since last August and will be looking to settle down with the French side. The 25-year-old defender played for Sporting Kansas City in the MLS but has spent the majority of his career in Europe.
He’s been at Porto, Manchester City (who he signed for but never played a game), KV Kortrijk, NAC Breda and Austria Vienna, mostly on loan. Sportsbooks probably have a special employee dedicated to working the odds out on who he’ll play for next.
It was last August when he arrived at Troyes and of course it was a loan deal. He impressed the Ligue 1 side and was signed on a permanent basis in February of this year. Brown has only played four games for the USA but was on the subs bench in their recent 1-1 draw in El Salvador. The odds are he will make it to Qatar for the World Cup. Some good defensive displays for Troyes wouldn’t hurt his chances.
Nicholas Gioachinni will also be battling to get into the USA World Cup squad. He’s played three times for the American team and currently plays up front for Ligue 2 Caen. Although born in Missouri, his family moved to France when he was 15.
He’s played for Paris FC and then Caen but spent last season on loan at Ligue 1 Montpelller. Playing 28 games last season without scoring might not be improving his chances of World Cup glory. He has had better form with the national side though playing eight games and scoring three goals.
Konrad de la Fluente also plays for Marseille. He’s another who has never played in the MLS. His family moved to Spain when he was just 10 and he ended up signing for Barcelona. Last June saw him transferred to Marseille but has only three caps and has not played for the USA this year.
The odds on him getting to Qatar might be reduced if he can have some good early season form with Marseille. Also looking for a good start to the season will be Kobi Henry who is a defender with Reims B. He’d been playing in the USL for Orange County before Reims signed him last year.
It’s going to be an interesting start to the 2022/23 season. Players will be all out to catch the eye of international bosses and some good performances in Ligue 1 might just do that.
