21-year-old, Jackson Khoury, has earned his first call-up to the Lebanese national team.
Khoury was born and raised in Baulkham Hills, a stone’s throw north of Parramatta’s CommBank Stadium where the two nations will meet on Tonight Thursday.
“It will be really special,” he says just hours after landing in Sydney after an arduous 24-hour journey from Statesboro in Georgia, where he plays with the USL League One side South Georgia Tormenta FC.
“I think it will make everyone very proud, especially with the hard work that I’ve put in, but also that my family have put in along the way. I’m sure it’ll bring massive smiles to their faces, and just make everyone very excited and proud of what’s to come and the sacrifices that we’ve all made.”
Khoury is the eldest of three siblings born to an Australian mother and Lebanese father, through whom he is eligible to represent the team ranked 115th in FIFA’s world rankings.
Khoury had a taste of national team life during a pre-Asian Cup training camp in Lebanon and impressed their coach, Miodrag Radulović, enough to earn a full selection for this series.
Khoury, is a product of Sydney United and Central Coast Mariners’ academy.
Khoury will be hoping to be selected to play for Lebanon and, if he does, he won’t just be representing his paternal heritage, he’ll be representing the pride of an entire community.