Diego Luna has been the talk of the United States national team supporters the past week or so. And for good reason. While nobody had the Real Salt Lake-attached player as being one of the highlights of the States’ Gold Cup campaign prior to its start, he has been an absolute revelation, banging in three goals and helping boost the USMNT into the Gold Cup final against rival Mexico on Sunday.
Despite once being on the fringes of the national pool and often being passed over when it came to call-ups, the Mexican-American dual-national Luna endeared himself to current USMNT gaffer Mauricio Pochettino after continuing to play despite having his nose broken during a friendly against Costa Rica back in January. In that game, he’d go on to assist one of the goals in the US’s 3-0 win over Los Ticos. It was a performance that showed grit and determination, something the United States — despite being in the midst of a golden generation — hasn’t shown too often against any opponent not named Mexico, who, in all honesty, are probably worse than they’ve been in a long time. And now, Luna has taken that grit into the Gold Cup. And, along with goalkeeper Matt Freese, Luna is now being looked at as a viable option when it comes to World Cup call-ups next summer.
But where does EA FC 25 see Diego Luna fitting into the USMNT? And realistically, where should he fit in?
EA FC 25 Doesn’t See Diego Luna As A Viable Threat To The USMNT Starting XI
Using EA FC to judge a player’s talent is incredibly difficult, as the game seems to arbitrarily assign attributes and positions when it comes to certain players who aren’t in the limelight. The game will also struggle to keep up with updating these players as time goes on. Granted, football is a massive sport around the world, so keeping up with every corner of it isn’t always going to be easy, especially if it doesn’t have to do with one of the marquee leagues such as the Premier League or La Liga.
Anyways, all of that is to say that because of his status as a midfielder who plays in MLS, Diego Luna isn’t ranked too high up in terms of where he’s at in the United States’ national pool. At a 71 overall, Luna is pretty much the fourth choice left winger at best, behind players such as Alejandro Zendejas, Brenden Aaronson, and Kevin Paredes.
Personally, I disagree with this assessment.
Kevin Paredes is a highly touted young player at Wolfsburg, and Zendejas can ball out on his day. But saying Luna isn’t a better option than Brenden Aaronson, who honestly hasn’t shown more than just a good motor, is laughable to me. The difference is, Aaronson plays for Leeds in the Premier League, and Luna is still in MLS, a league that is often maligned by the greater football world (though many times, that criticism is unfair).
Regardless, Luna has endeared himself to USMNT supporters and the manager with his Gold Cup showing. And, as a result, not only do I anticipate he’ll get a call-up for the World Cup next year, but I also imagine he’ll be looking at suitors in Europe very soon.
