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“Apparently, (Canadian U-20 coach) Rob Gale is very high on him as well with the National team program,” Miller said. “He played very well in both games against England. I’m very, very pleased with Shamit, his attitude is fantastic.

“He missed training (Wednesday) to take a big exam at the University of Alberta. It just shows you how intelligent he is and how committed he is to both his education and his football.”

Shome played 80 minutes in Tampa before being replaced by Pablo Cruz. A graduate of the FC Edmonton academy, Shome played his minor soccer with Edmonton’s South West United club.

Not wanting to overwhelm him with a professional debut at home, Miller figured Tampa was the best option for Shome to get a start.

“That’s exactly why I did it,” Miller said. “The team hadn’t played well against Minnesota and that’s not a time to make your professional debut. It gave me a chance to work with the team with Shamit in it, so it wasn’t a huge surprise to everybody.

“I remember me making my professional debut for the Toronto Bizzard against the Portland Timbers and that was down in Portland. The manager did that for a reason as well and there was a method in my madness doing that with Shamit and I thought the lad played very well.”

Shome was just happy to make his debut, regardless of the setting.

He hopes to get back in the lineup Sunday when FC Edmonton hosts the Ottawa Fury (2 p.m.) at Clarke Stadium.

“It was a great experience, I was excited to be a part of the team,” Shome said. “It went all right, I think, but there are a lot of things I can improve on, and I’m just working away in training to improve even more.