Reyna, Busio headline U.S. squad for U-17 World Cup

Giovani Reyna and Gianluca Busio headline the U.S. Under-17 men's national team squad bound for the upcoming U-17 World Cup.

Head coach Raphael Wicky has called in 21 players for his squad, headlined by the two attacking stars.

The U.S. is set to kick off the World Cup on October 27 with a match against Senegal before facing Japan three days later.

To conclude the group stage, the U.S. will take on a talented Netherlands squad, with the top two finishers in each group as well as the four best third-placed teams advancing to the knockout stages.

Reyna, the son of USMNT legend Claudio, headlines the squad, with the Borussia Dortmund playmaker joining the U.S. team after featuring for the German side's first team in preseason.

He was also named to the club's Champions League roster, but has primarily featured in the U-19 Bundesliga and UEFA Youth League.

Busio, meanwhile, featured 12 times for Sporting KC this season in MLS, scoring three goals, while also making three further appearances in CONCACAF Champions League play, making him the most experienced professional to ever take the field for the U.S. team at a U-17 World Cup with 26 total league appearances.

The squad featured 17 players who are based in the U.S., with Reyna and Freiburg's Maximilian Dietz representing German clubs while goalkeepers Damian Las and Chituru Odunze play for Fulham and Leicester City, respectively.

Among the MLS-based players is Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez, the U-17s’ leading scorer with nine goals, who broke out for the Seattle Sounders during the Generation Adidas Cup by scoring six goals in five matches.

In total, the squad features 14 returning players from the Concacaf U-17 Championship squad that sealed a World Cup place, including Reyna, Busio, Kobe Hernandez-Foster and Daniel Levya, who were all named to the tournament's Best XI.

GOALKEEPERS: Aaron Cervantes (Orange County SC), Damian Las (Fulham), Chituru Odunze (Leicester City)

DEFENDERS: Sebastian Anderson (Colorado Rapids), Adam Armour (North Carolina FC), George Bello (Atlanta United FC), Nicolas Carrera (FC Dallas), Tayvon Gray (New York City FC), Kobe Hernandez-Foster (LA Galaxy), Joe Scally (New York City FC)

MIDFIELDERS: Maximilian Dietz (Freiburg), Ethan Dobbelaere (Seattle Sounders), Bryang Kayo (Orange County SC), Daniel Leyva (Seattle Sounders), Adam Saldana (LA Galaxy)

FORWARDS: Gianluca Busio (Sporting Kansas City), Andres Jasson (New York City FC), Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez (Seattle Sounders FC; Mer), Ricardo Pepi (FC Dallas), Gio Reyna (Borussia Dortmund), Griffin Yow (D.C. United)