

Posted by

Kamal Hylton ,

June 14, 2015 Email

Kamal Hylton

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Following his first cap for the Canadian Men’s national team, starting up front and logging 74 minutes in the 2-0 win over Dominica, Tesho Akindele has officially committed his international future to Canada just in time to begin the road to the 2018 FIFA World Cup.



“It feels amazing to finally be capped at the international level,” Akindele told RedNation Online. “I thought my first game was good and it’s always nice to get a win in your first game. Personally, I thought I played pretty well. There are some areas I can improve on, but I’m happy with it overall.”



As has been the case with many Canadian soccer players in the past, the Calgary-born, U.S raised forward was being pursued by multiple national team programs, with both Canadian national team coach Benito Floro and U.S. national team coach Jürgen Klinsmann interested in him. This put the commitment of the former Canada U-17 national team player to Canada in doubt after he joined a U.S. team camp in early January for friendly matches against Chile and Panama.



With two ambitious national teams that also happen to be CONCACAF rivals wooing him, the 23-year-old felt it necessary to give his international future careful consideration.



“It was difficult,” Akindele said. “I took a long time to make the choice, but the reason I did that was because I didn’t want to have any regrets after I made my choice. I think I made the right choice for myself and I’m happy with it.”



“He [Benito Floro] has made it clear that the goal is to qualify for the next World Cup [in 2018],” Akindele added. “This has obviously been the only camp I’ve been to but that has been the message, everything is building for the World Cup.”







Raised in Thornton, Colorado and going to the obscure Colorado School of Mines, an NCAA Division III school from the Rocky Mountain Conference, Akindele was a four year All-American and ended his collegiate career as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 76 goals.



His scoring record aside, it was still a shock on draft night when coach Óscar Pareja and FC Dallas selected Canada’s newest recruit 6th overall in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft. Akindele burst onto the scene late last year, ending the season with seven goals and three assists in 26 games and winning 2014 MLS Rookie of the Year.



“I’m loving Dallas right now, we have a great team and I love the coaching staff,” Akindele explained. “They took a chance on me when a lot of teams wouldn’t, drafting me pretty high last year.”



Having the reigning MLS Rookie of the Year paired up front with the front runner for 2015 MLS Rookie of the Year in forward Cyle Larin is a sign of a bright future for the Canadian Men’s National Team, with both players providing Canadian soccer something different.



However, in Akindele’s case, he bring something else to supporters that has been rare: a sense of relief that for once a player won’t jilt them alongside optimism of what he can bring to Floro’s ambitious bunch.