The coach says he would like to see the 18-year-old Arsenal player with his senior squad sooner than later, but FIFA still needs to approve his eligibility.

PHILADELPHIA — Young Arsenal midfielder Gedion Zelalem has been exciting American fans ever since he first surfaced as a possible option for the United States, but the giddiness over Gedion isn’t limited to the team's supporters.

Jurgen Klinsmann is a fan. And as much as he is fully aware that Zelalem is still just an 18-year-old who remains several steps away from seeing playing time at Arsenal, Klinsmann believes Zelalem has the talent to help the U.S. team.

“(Zelalem) is a special case. He’s a special player,” Klinsmann told a small group of reporters Wednesday. “I think he’s already at a level that he can definitely play on the senior team.”

The German-born Zelalem is currently eligible to play for Germany and Ethiopia, but he is not automatically eligible for the United States despite having spent his formative years, from ages 9 to 16 living in Maryland. Zelalem wants to play for the U.S. and is in the process of trying to gain eligibility.

To do so, Zelalem must receive a special waiver from FIFA, a waiver he is in the process of trying to secure but one he has yet to receive.

“The process is ongoing,” U.S. Soccer spokesman Neil Buethe said Thursday of Zelalem’s request for a waiver. “There is no update at this time.”

Complicating matters is Germany’s growing interest in trying to convince Zelalem to play for the European powerhouse. There is a belief that Germany’s desire to land Zelalem is putting pressure on FIFA to not just rubberstamping Zelalem’s U.S. eligibility.

If and when Zelalem does receive the FIFA waiver to play for the U.S., he will be eligible to play for the U.S. Under-20 national team, which will compete in the Under-20 World Cup this summer, and the Under-23 national team, which will attempt to qualify for the Olympics in the fall. Before he joins those teams, Klinsmann is hoping to see Zelalem with the senior team as soon as possible, preferably before he takes part in youth national team duty.

“Definitely I would like to see him with me first,” Klinsmann said. “I want to kind of see how he interacts with the whole group and what level he’s in, and then for the next dates then totally open then to have him play with the U-23s or with (U.S. Under-20 coach Tab Ramos).”

It remains unclear just how long Zelalem’s appeal process to FIFA will take, but what is clear is that if FIFA does approve Zelalem’s eligibility for the U.S., Klinsmann will be ready to welcome him with open arms.