Emma Hayes has said she won’t try to sway Lily Yohannes toward the U.S. women’s national team when Chelsea meets Ajax in the UEFA Women’s Champions League quarterfinals.
Yohannes has won a starting role with Ajax at just 16 years old, marking herself as a potential future superstar for club and country.
Which country the midfielder represents, though, is an open question at this point. Yohannes was born in Virginia and moved to the Netherlands in 2017 at age 10. Though she is not yet a Dutch citizen, Netherlands manager Andries Jonker has claimed the teenager would like to play for the Dutch in the future.
That could be an alarming prospect for Hayes, who will finish out the current season as Chelsea head coach before taking over the USWNT in May.
Though Hayes was full of praise for Yohannes ahead of Tuesday’s quarterfinal first leg, the coach said she won’t use the meeting as a recruiting opportunity.
“There’s no denying Lily has tremendous talent, and to play for a top European team at the age of 16 in the center midfield position just shows how much faith the coaching team has in her,” Hayes said in a press conference.
“Her final pass is exceptional. She’s got the ability, especially in tight areas she can get out of pressure really well. But her vision, the quality of her execution is really, really high. Sometimes I don’t believe she’s 16 years of age because she plays with such maturity, but a wonderful talent.”
Asked if she would aim to convince the midfielder to pick the USWNT, Hayes responded: “No, absolutely not. I’m here for Chelsea and I don’t influence those things at this time. Whatever she decides in her future that’s for her and her family to decide.
“Tomorrow she’s on the other team and I’m more interested in how we’re going to stop her, to be honest.”
[lawrence-related id=41940,35557]