The Houston Dynamo Academy U-16s have brought in the reinforcements this weekend for the Generation Adidas Cup Central Regional in Kansas City, as midfielder Marcelo Palomino rejoins the team from U.S. U-17 residency for the start of the annual tournament.
A standout from an early age with the Academy—he made an appearance with the U-18s as a 13-year-old—Palomino is one of only a handful of U-16 players in residency with the U-17s in Bradenton, Florida, as they prepare for the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017.
“He’s there full time, but we’ve got the GA Cup so U.S. Soccer’s allowed him to come back,” Dynamo Academy director James Clarkson said. "They let them come back for good events and they see that as one, so he’s back to play with us for the GA Cup.”
Palomino said the transition to the residency camp has been a challenge off the field that has made him into a more mature person. On the field, he’s taken to the high level of play and plans on bringing the lessons learned back to his teammates in Houston when he gets the welcome trips home.
“It feels great,” Palomino said of his return trips to the Dynamo Academy. “They’ve become like a family to me. I’ve been playing with them since I was about 8, 9 years old so it’s great to see them after a while and it’s great to be on the same field as them.”
Palomino, an attacking midfielder, was one of three Dynamo players called into a U.S. U-16 training camp in September along with midfielder Berto Soto and goalkeeper Osmer Chavero. Palomino has been in national team camps since he was 14 years old, but said it was great to have familiar faces with him at the national level and that hopefully they continue their progress and receive more call-ups.
Clarkson said Palomino’s consistency is something every player in the Dynamo system can aspire to: “Hopefully Marcelo can be a role model for the rest of the kids in the program that they can get there as he continues to develop and move on.”
The Dynamo U-16s play three games in Kansas City in the first round of the regional portion of the Generation Adidas Cup—against Toronto FC (Oct. 7), FC Dallas (Oct. 8), and Chicago Fire (Oct. 10). The second round of regionals will take place in February in Houston.
