RALEIGH, N.C. – Wil Trapp has plenty of experience wearing the red, white and blue on the international stage, having represented the United States at nearly every level of its youth national team system during his younger years.
To date he only has three senior caps under his belt, however, leaving him eager to make his mark in Tuesday’s friendly against Paraguay at Sahlen's Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (7:30 pm ET | FS1, UniMas).
“It’s exciting being here in camp,” Trapp said at Tuesday’s training session. “It’s going to be a great game against Paraguay. We have a good group here, young guys who are hungry and driven.”
The Columbus Crew SC midfielder established himself in the national team setup during the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup qualifying run, where he was the only player to appear in all 12 matches, making 11 starts with 955 minutes on the field. During that stretch, he notched a goal against Canada in a 4-2 qualifying win to help the United States qualify for the U-20 World Cup.
Trapp says he can draw on that experience to help him at the senior level.
“You know some of the guys here, so there’s chemistry,” said Trapp. “But also, there’s the experience of being in a national-team environment, and knowing how to conduct yourself business-wise. It’s always an honor to be here representing your country.”
Trapp is in his sixth season with Crew SC, where he has made 130 appearances with 127 starts and has tallied over 11,000 minutes of play. He had his most productive year in 2017, making 34 starts and contributing five assists as Columbus advanced to the Eastern Conference Championship for the second time in three years.
He says the game remains the same, however, even in the international arena.
“It’s still 11 guys playing against 11 guys, and there’s one ball,” Trapp said. “Right now we’re just trying to fit in as best as we can, and forge chemistry.”
With the match just around the corner, Trapp said this week’s gathering is off to a strong start, and he looks forward to playing with the new names on the roster.
“Camp has been wonderful,” said Trapp. “The group is young and hungry, and there’s a lot of guys with some inexperience, but it’s exciting to have some new faces in camp.”
