18-year-old soccer phenom Gedion Zelalem blew everyone away in his 1st start for the US

Gedion Zelalem, an 18-year-old Arsenal midfielder, stole the show in the United States under-20 team's 4-0 win over New Zealand at the U-20 World Cup.

Zelalem, who was born in Germany but recently became an American citizen and switched his national team allegiance to the US, is now the most hyped prospect in the US system. In his first start for the US U-20's, he drew rave reviews from the American soccer world with his skill on the ball.

Zelalem pulled off a nutmeg at one point, passing the ball in between a helpless New Zealand defender's legs to teammate Bradford Jamieson IV:

He followed that up with a beautiful assist, while being swarmed by four New Zealand defenders, to set up fellow midfielder Paul Arriola's goal to give the US a 3-0 lead:

Zelalem wasn't done just yet. Later in the game, the young midfielder delivered a beautiful rabona — which, somehow, didn't result in yet another US goal:

While USMNT fans tried to remain cautiously optimistic prior to the game, Twitter still exploded following Zelalem's brilliant performance:

American Soccer Now's John Godfrey wrote after the game of Zelalem and Emerson Hyndman: "Zelalem's vision and skill on the ball were nothing short of spectacular, and together with Hyndman the US now has two impressive central midfielders it can rely on to create and distribute."

Fans and writers aren't the only ones who are enamored with Zelalem. USMNT coach Jurgen Klinsmann told ESPN's Doug McIntyre three weeks ago, before Zelalem was even eligible to play for the US, that he thought the talented midfielder could play for the senior national team right now:

"I think he's already at a level that he can definitely play on the senior team," Klinsmann said. "He's a special player."

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