PITTSBURGH (Sept. 4, 2024) — Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC midfielder Junior Etou was selected for the Congo National Team ahead of their upcoming African Cup of Nations qualifiers against South Sudan and Uganda.
Etou, 30, has previously been in camp with the Congolese squad but has yet to make his senior international debut. That could come Thursday in the team’s match at home in the capital, Brazzaville, against South Sudan, or on Monday when the team travels to Kampala, Uganda, for their second qualifying match.
The Red Devils, as the Republic of Congo’s team is known, are seeking to qualify for the 2025 edition of Africa’s biennial continental championship, which they last qualified for in 2015.
A native of Brazzaville who moved to Paris as a youth, Etou has been a constant in the Hounds lineup during his two years with the team, playing primarily as a left-sided wing back or midfielder. This season, he is second on the team with 2,089 minutes played with two goals and two assists, and he was named the USL Championship Player of the Week for the first time in his career during the week of July 8-14.
Etou will miss the Hounds’ match this Saturday against Rhode Island FC, but he will be back in the fold for the team’s Sept. 14 match at the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
