Melbourne Victory star Elvis Kamsoba has revealed he turned down an international call-up from Burundi - his country of birth - after being contacted by their football federation last week.
In an exclusive interview with Goal, the 22-year-old attacker said the African nation wanted him to make his debut in Saturday's African Cup of Nations qualifier at home against Gabon.
Burundi will qualify for the Afcon if they beat Gabon this weekend. Kamsoba didn't rule out accepting a call-up from Burundi going forward but made it clear he hopes to play for his adopted country Australia in the future.
"I recently got a phone call from the Burundi international team - where I'm from. They have a game against Gabon this Saturday. That's the game I got called for," Kamsoba told Goal.
"But obviously I couldn't go. I'm still in between deciding, I wasn't sure. I told them, for now, to just wait until I'm 100 per cent sure what I want to do.
Next Match
"My aim is obviously to play for Australia and if I get a chance that will be something special for me and my family."
Kamsoba was born in Burundi, an African nation located between the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Tanzania, before moving to a refugee camp in the latter country at four months of age.
He has come to prominence in the A-League after impressing down the left flank for Victory since making his debut against Adelaide United on January 9.
Kamsoba's best performance came in the stunning 3-2 win over Central Coast Mariners, with the flying winger grabbing an assist and playing a pivotal role as Victory came back from two goals down.
Elvis Kamsoba's incredible story of living in a Tanzanian refugee camp to making it as a professional footballer in the A-League will be showcased on Goal next week.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)
