New York City FC defenders Alexander Callens and Maxime Chanot were called up to represent their national teams during this international break. They join goalkeeper Sean Johnson and James Sands (who is currently on loan with Glasgow FC), who were called up by the USMNT earlier.
Callens has 28 caps for Peru, and he will join a squad that is on the cusp of qualifying for their second FIFA World Cup in a row. It’s a nervy time for la Blanquirroja: They currently sit in fifth place on the table with two games left to play. The top four teams qualify directly for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, while the fifth-place team will face the fifth place team from the Asian Football Confederation in a one-game playoff.
Peru is currently behind Ecuador and Colombia, and with two wins and they could climb as high as third place. But they are closely followed by Chile and Colombia, and either of those teams could eliminate Peru.
Peru face Uruguay at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo tomorrow at 7:30 pm ET, then they host Paraguay at the Estadio Nacional de Lima on Tuesday, March 29 at 7:30 pm ET.
That second game could see Callens face NYCFC alum Jesús Medina, who was called up to the Selección de Fútbol de Paraguay.
Chanot has 48 caps for Luxembourg, who were eliminated from UEFA World Cup Qualifying and will spend this international break playing friendly matches. On Friday, March 25 at 3:15 pm ET, the Lëtzebuergesch Foussballnationalequipe will host Northern Ireland at the Stage de Luxembourg, and on Tuesday, March 29 at 2:45 pm ET they will play Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Bilino Polje Stadium in Zeneca, Bosnia.
Good luck, boys.
