Exciting Newcastle United youngster Matheos Ferreira was born in Ashington and raised in Berwick-upon-tweed, but the 18-year-old has just received a call-up to Brazil’s U20 side for the upcoming international break.
Ferreira is widely considered one of the top talents emerging from the Magpies’ academy and, despite his international recognition, is set to be subject to a tug of war over his representation in the coming years, as he is actually eligible for three different countries.
The Brazil call-up
Being called up to Brazil’s U20 setup is no mean feat and is a real testament to how Ferreira’s stocks have risen over the past year in the Magpies’ academy.
Ferreira first became involved with the first team last season, when Eddie Howe brought him in as a regular member of training.
The buzz around him only continued to grow from there, with some quality performances for Newcastle’s U18s and now U21s gaining him recognition outside of the North East bubble, and seeing a continuation of his first-team involvement under Matthias Jaissle.
All of that reputation growth has ultimately come to a head over the past couple of days, with Ferreira receiving this well-deserved call-up and preparing for his first international camp.
Ferreira’s international declaration dilemma
This inclusion clearly shows Brazil are trying to get in early with Ferreira, although he has already made appearances for England’s youth teams too. But even with that attempt to sway his thinking it simply isn’t as straight forward as just committing his international future to Brazil.
That’s because the 18-year-old’s father is from Brazil, his mother is from Italy and, of course, he was born in England. That means he is eligible for all three of those footballing powerhouse nations and has a real decision to make as to which country he ultimately declares for.
Having now been called up for two of those three, and with Italy reportedly sniffing around, Ferreira is in a wonderful position, but one in which he will have to be cautious about to ensure he makes the right choice for his career prospects when the time comes.
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