Weston McKennie scores first goal for Schalke

Over the weekend, Weston McKennie finally opened up his bank account with Schalke 04. The kid who will turn 20 on August 28th scored in the 69th minute of Schalke’s final preseason match against Fiorentina. And boy, what a pretty run it was for the youngster.

McKennie received the ball inside his own half with acres of space, and he takes the ball straight down the middle of the field towards goal. Once he hit the final third, Fiorentina’s defense bunched up. So, instead of taking a shot, he backs out to pass the ball out wide to Daniel Caligiuri, and then cuts toward the goal. Seconds later, Caligiuri sends the ball into the 6-yard box, where a sprinting McKennie was there to easily smash it home.

It was McKennie’s first professional goal for Schalke, and it opened up the scoring for Die Königsblauen in a 3-0 victory. Weston McKennie is expected to have a breakout season in 2018-2019 and was one of 4 youngsters from the United States who made the Bundesliga Wonderkids to Watch list, the others being Christian Pulisic, Josh Sargent and Jonathan Klinsmann. Weston McKennie having a great year will do wonders for the USMNT as they begin a new cycle, and this will hopefully give him the confidence he needs to start league play in two weeks with a bang.