Inter Miami CF Academy duo Nicholas Almeida and Santiago Morales have been called up to the U.S. U-16 Men’s Youth National Team by head coach Michael Nsien for the 2023 International Dream Cup in Fukushima, Japan to take place May 20 through June 4. The USA will take on Japan, Netherlands and Nigeria at J-Village Stadium in its matchups.
Schedule
May 31
Japan vs. USA - 1 a.m. ET
June 1Â
USA vs. Netherlands - 10 p.m. ET
June 3Â
Nigeria vs. USA -10 p.m. ET
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2007, are age-eligible for this U-16 MYNT cycle. Nsien selected 18 players born in 2007 and two born in 2008. All are eligible for the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup, set for this November/December with the host country still to be confirmed.
Both Morales and Almeida have previous experience on the international stage. The two Inter Miami CF Academy athletes have been called up at the international level a combined twelve times since they joined the Club. This is Almeida’s fourth international call up; Morales has been called up a total of eight times.
In 2022, Almeida and Morales helped put together a spectacular season with the Inter Miami Academy U-15s in 2022, becoming national champions by claiming the MLS NEXT Cup title. Morales scored the winner in the tournament's final and was selected as the MVP of the U-15 MLS NEXT Cup Playoffs. Both players, who have since made the jump to the Academy’s U-17 team, more recently competed with the U-17 side at the 2023 Generation Adidas Cup in April and at MLS NEXT Flex earlier this month.
Almeida and Morales are among a growing list of current and former Inter Miami CF Academy players to be called up to a national team, including: Noah Allen, Tyler Austin, Edison Azcona, Israel Boatwright, Marco Cantalapiedra, Benjamin Cremaschi, Bryan Destin, Justin Ellis, Victor Fung, Tyler Hall, Daniel Pinter, Adrián Rosario, David Ruiz and Felipe Valencia, among others.
For additional coverage of our team, you can follow our Academy’s journey online via Twitter @InterMiamiAcad and Instagram @InterMiamiCF_Academy.
