It’s no secret that I have been a huge supporter of Jonathan Lewis, a sentiment that is shared among virtually everyone here at Hudson River Blue as well as a huge portion of New York City FC’s fan base. Apparently, new USMNT manager Gregg Berhalter is of a similar ilk as he has selected the 21-year-old winger as part of his first-ever squad since being named the US’s new boss earlier this month.
Lewis — who struggled to find consistent time with NYCFC both under Patrick Vieira and Domé Torrent in 2018 — is a late addition to this first squad of 2019, which was previously announced on December 20 and also includes NYCFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson. Lewis and his international teammates will report to training camp on January 6 and will be participating in a pair of friendlies against CONCACAF rivals Panama and Costa Rica on January 27 and February 2 respectively.
This is Lewis’ first senior team call-up of his career. The former Akron Zip formerly featured for the US’s U-20 side from 2016 to 217, making 6 appearances with a goal to show for it and helped the Young Yanks win the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship.
We can only hope that this international call-up will raise Lewis’ stock within the NYCFC organization. Since making his debut in 2017, I and many others have sung the young winger’s praises and have clamored for him to feature more prominently for the Bronx Blues, especially over players such as Jo Inge Berget and Taty Castellanos who, in all honesty, have seldom contributed to success for the Bronx Blues.
Should Lewis get significant playing time on an international stage next month, he has a really good chance at possibly earning more minutes with NYCFC as well. At least, one would hope.
