FOR TOP YOUNG American players who grow up in the United States, the most common developmental paths are typically through MLS academies followed by homegrown contracts, youth national team appearances, and then a potential sale to a European team. Some players, like Christian Pulisic, are scooped up by European teams earlier and the college path still produces international quality players like Matt Turner and Daryl Dike.

Agustin Anello, 20, however, has paved a unique path which began just outside Miami in Hialeah, Florida where he was born to parents from Argentina. He would grow up about 90 minutes away in Cape Coral where he learned to love the sport of soccer.

It helped Anello that he came from a passionate soccer family. His father played in Argentina but never made it to the professional levels. His uncle, Eliezer Anello, played in New Zealand for Auckland City. He drew inspiration watching players like Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho while also playing for hours in his backyard. Anello also watched the sport regularly on television saying: “at the time in the U.S., MLS wasn't that big. It's getting really big now. But I watched a lot of European clubs.”

At the age of 10, his family relocated to Barcelona for his father’s job. For seven years in Spain, he played for the youth teams of Cornellà and Espanyol before moving to Belgium to play for Lommel SK. The Covid pandemic set everything back, but in 2021, he signed his first professional contract with the second division Belgian team.

But it wasn’t until after his first season in Lommel SK last summer in 2022 when Anello returned to Florida for the first time since he left a decade earlier.

“To be honest, I love Florida – it feels like home,” Anello told ASN. “I had a great childhood. I loved being outside my house, just kicking the ball against the wall – I broke a few windows. I loved it there and we had a nice house. This summer was the first time I came back after ten years. I still have some friends over there, and it was really nice - like coming back home. I loved it. I got skin burned by like the third day but it was great. The climate there in Miami especially, it's always warm, and the people - because I also have Argentinian roots - speak English and Spanish.”

After returning to Europe from Florida last summer, Anello has seen his career take off. He had an excellent start to the season with Lommel where he scored six goals and added four assists across 1186 minutes and 18 games.

During the winter break, he then visited Argentina and was there to attend the World Cup victory celebrations in Buenos Aires – an experience he said “was absolutely crazy, a festival. It was nice to watch it all.”

But Anello’s success at Lommel the first half of the season did not go unnoticed. On February 13, Hajduk Split moved in quickly to acquire Anello on a loan through the end of the season and that also includes an option to buy. As one of Eastern Europe’s biggest clubs, Hajduk has won six Croatian titles and, prior to the Yugoslavian breakup, nine Yugoslavian titles. They have also won seven Croatian Cups and nine Yugoslavian Cups.

On top of that, Hajduk manager Ivan Leko quickly inserted Anello into the club’s starting lineup just days after he joined the club. At first it was to fill a need at left wingback. But in subsequent games, the right footed Anello has returned to his preferred left wing.

“It was crazy,” Anello recalled. “I got to the club and the left back got sick and the coach right away put me in the starting 11. I was happy about that.”

Thus far, he’s started in his first three league games in the HNL, including a difficult loss to in the “Eternal Derby” - an intense rivalry between Croatia's two biggest clubs, Hajduk Split and Dinamo Zagreb. In his most recent game, a 4-3 loss to Lokomotiva Zagreb, Anello picked up his first assist.

Hajduk 1-2 Lokomotiva (40')

Mlakar gets one back for Hajduk after a nice assist from Anello! pic.twitter.com/oZFUJRdBjz

— Everything About HNL (@AboutHnl) March 5, 2023

As of now, Hajduk Split sits comfortably in second place of the HNL, 12 points behind Dinamo Zagreb but eight points ahead of third place Osijek. They are also into the semifinal round of the Croatian Cup. Thus far, Anello is enjoying the challenge and the opportunity of playing at Hajduk.

“What I've seen here in Croatia, they like to do a lot of transition, transition in the attack - I try to exploit that aspect,” Anello said. “I want to soak it all in. I want to be at this club - do well, score goals, make assists, make appearances. But for now, I just want to get games and try to help the club do the best they can.”

“To be honest, I love this city,” he added. “The fans are great. You can really feel them. They go 10,000 - 20,000 per game. I love it. Great atmosphere, great teammates. Sure, the adaptation is going to maybe take a while, but everything's going on route.”

When Anello first arrived in Split, one of the first teammates he was introduced to was Rokas Pukstas, a fellow American who plays for the United States U-20 national team. For Anello, Pukstas is the first professional American player he has ever met and Pukstas told Anello that he was eligible for the U.S. U-23 team which will compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics. While Anello's parents are from Argentina, the only passports he holds are for the United States and Italy.

“Before coming here. I didn't know who Rokus was,” Anello said. “But the first day we got along really well. He's such a good kid and a really good player - you can tell from the first day. He helped me a lot during the first days when I came in. He helped me a lot to get to know the club.”

“The first day actually, he told me that I was eligible for the Olympics,” he added. “He said that maybe we would be seeing each other in Paris.”

Anello has never represented the United States at any level but he feels connected to the national team. He closely followed the U.S. team in Qatar where it advanced out of group play before being stopped by the Netherlands.

Overall, Anello came away extremely impressed with the team, especially with how it played against England in a 0-0 draw.

“I was literally impressed with what I saw,” Anello explained. “They played great football versus England. In the end, I think they dominated most of the game. I really like what I saw, and I really think the United States in the next years is going to be a strong contender and not only getting out of the group. Especially with young talents that are coming up… They are going to be up there.”

As for what is next for Anello, he wants to be part of the next group of young players that are attempting to push into the U.S. team ahead of the 2026 World Cup. He is well aware that he is not well known in American soccer circles but he is hoping that by making regular impacts with a club the caliber of Hajduk Split, which has developed some of  the best Croatian players, that it will help him to get more noticed in the United States.

With the Olympics coming up and him being eligible for the U-23 team, he knows he has a big opportunity in 2023 to start making inroads.

“I consider myself a pretty ambitious person,” Anello said. “I try to set goals in the short term. My next short-term goal is trying to make a goal or assists with Hajduk Split. I think that's going to maybe push me to try to get my first call up to the U.S.”

“That's a short-term goal right now – being called up. It's a dream of mine, to be honest, because for all these years maybe I was a little bit under the radar. I want to make my debut, get a start, be called up. It would be a dream of mine going to the Olympics, especially with the U.S., your home country, the country that you feel that represents you. I would love it. I'm really excited to see what comes.”