Liverpool youngster Isaac Mabaya will link up with the England under-18s for the first time this week, after turning down an approach from Zimbabwe.
Mabaya was part of Liverpool’s first-team squad to take on Shrewsbury in the FA Cup third round earlier this season, called up to the substitutes’ bench at Anfield.
The 17-year-old has made great strides in recent months as a regular starter for the under-18s, as well as featuring for the under-19s in the UEFA Youth League.
A versatile young player, Mabaya has seen most of his minutes come at right-back, but he has also been used as a No. 6, a No. 8 and even on the right-wing.
This impressive run has earned Mabaya his first-ever call-up to the England U18s, as one of four Liverpool youngsters drafted into Ryan Garry’s squad alongside Lee Jonas, Terence Miles and Oakley Cannonier.
However, according to the Zimbabwean newspaper the Herald, he has also been subject to advances from his parents’ native country.
But his father David Mabaya reportedly told This Is Anfield that “he does not have dual-citizenship,” adding:
We realised it’s too complicated to play for Zimbabwe, [with] passports etc., it’s a bit of a hassle.
Mabaya was born in Preston and joined the Liverpool academy as a six-year-old, so it was always likely that an England U18s call-up would prove more tempting.
Several UK-based players have been on Zimbabwe’s radar and some have already agreed to play for their native country while some are optimistic they can break into the England team.