With USMNT forward Jordan Morris on the brink of joining Swansea City on a six-month loan deal, he could be joined by USA teammate Paul Arriola in Wales.
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According to a report from Yahoo’s Doug McIntyre, Arriola is in talks to join Swansea City.
It is believed that Arriola could initially join Swansea on loan until the end of the 2020-21 season in Europe, then return to D.C. United right at the start of the 2021 MLS season.
The D.C. United winger, 25, previously played for Club Tijuana in Mexico before arriving in Major League Soccer with DCU in 2017. Aside from a few serious injuries, Arriola has been a regular for the USMNT in recent years as he’s scored six goals in 34 outings and provides balance, work rate and cohesion to the attacking midfield positions.
Swansea would be a good spot for both Morris and Arriola, as they sit second in the Championship and are among the favorites to gain promotion to the Premier League.
Swansea’s manager Steve Cooper was the head coach of England’s U17 side which won the World Cup in 2017 and plays an attractive, attacking style of soccer and has given plenty of youngsters the chance to shine at the Liberty Stadium.
A lot of those youngsters have come up through Swansea’s academy, but plenty of Premier League clubs like to send their players on loan to Swansea due to the style of play.
USMNT players need to play in Europe
When it comes to Morris (26 years old) and Arriola, it is quite likely that Gregg Berhalter has hinted they should go and test themselves in Europe.
Both are approaching the prime of their careers and have proven themselves in MLS.
With so many young Americans flourishing in top leagues across Europe, the competition for spots on the USMNT roster for the Gold Cup and World Cup qualifiers this summer is fierce and players know that playing in Europe will add an extra tick next to their name.
That’s just the way it is, even though Berhalter is adamant that playing in MLS will not impact his decisions over individual players as every situation is different. That’s true, and Berhalter has been true to his word when it comes to giving USMNT players in MLS plenty of chances.
As for Swansea, well, their American ownership group also own D.C. United so it makes sense for them for this Arriola deal, and to tap into the U.S. market. After the disdain shown towards the Swans from the USMNT fanbase after the way they treated Bob Bradley, perhaps this is the start of that relationship being patched up again.
