THE GENERAL CONSENSUS is that the United States U-20 team received a favorable draw for this summer's World Cup—New Zealand, Ukraine, and Myanmar—but Group A may prove to be a bit trickier than many realize. In particular, New Zealand, the host nation, could provide a difficult test for the Yanks.

The All Whites have roster that consists of several promising players who will be boosted by passionate home crowds and a surge of national support. 

Bill Tuiloma, 19, will likely be the cornerstone of New Zealand’s U-20 squad. The defensive midfielder has already broken into the first team on Olympique Marseille as well as the full New Zealand national team. He is also a veteran of the New Zealand U-20 team that lost all three of its matches at the 2013 World Cup.

As the most accomplished player of the host nation, Tuiloma will be one of the most visible players at the World Cup and he is excited for the tournament. But he also realizes the group stage games will be difficult—including New Zealand’s second game against the United States in Auckland.

“I was pretty happy with who we got in our group but it’s going to be tough,” Tuiloma told American Soccer Now. “They'll be top players. Back home in New Zealand I think they're probably thinking the same thing with who we got in our group.”

“I don’t have much information on the U.S. team yet but that will come soon from the coaching staff,” Tuiloma added. “I think they’ll be a strong side, well-structured, and will be hard to break down.”

The makeup of New Zealand’s team is atypical. There are a few players in the pool based in Europe, a few in Australia's A-League, and even a handful playing college soccer in the United States. There is also a core group of athletes who play together every day and compete as a team in New Zealand's domestic league. <p></p>

“A large number of the wider squad are playing as part of a team competing in the national league in New Zealand with our coaching staff,” Tuiloma said. “The other players involved are spread around in teams in that league with a few players at overseas clubs. So the squad is looking good. We want to go further than any other New Zealand team before and getting to the quarterfinals would be massive.”

Tuiloma spent 2012-13 in the U.S. developing his game as a member of the Los Angeles Galaxy's youth academy. He left the MLS squad for a trial at Queens Park Rangers—where strict U.K. work permit regulations for non-E.U. citizens prevented him from signing. He then moved onto Marseille where he penned a deal shortly before the start of the 2013 U-20 World Cup.

After playing with Marseille’s youth teams, Tuiloma made his Ligue 1 first-team debut earlier this month in a 1-1 draw against Rennes. Since then he has been consistently making the matchday roster, and occasionally coming off the bench. Marseille are currently in third place in Ligue 1. 

Tuiloma looks back fondly at his time in Southern California.

“My time in the United States and training at Galaxy with the youth and reserves team was a great experience,” Tuiloma said. “I wanted to give it a go and like any other player, I want to be a professional football player.” 

Breaking into the first team at a club like Olympique Marseille as a teenager is an impressive accomplishment and the Galaxy recognized his talent but said that the MLS mechanisms were insufficient at the time to sign him at the age of 16-17. A Galaxy spokesman added that Tuiloma is the type of player the team would now be able to keep within the organization. 

“Bill was a player that the club did rate highly, but Galaxy II hadn’t been established yet and it would have been difficult to offer an MLS contract to him as an international player,” a Galaxy spokesman told ASN. “He is a talented player and that’s why he was a part of our academy system, but we couldn’t commit to an MLS contract. Galaxy II was created so we would have the opportunity to keep players like Bill within the Galaxy organization, from the Galaxy Academy through the first team.” 

For now, however, Tuiloma is excited to be a major part of one of the biggest soccer events to come to New Zealand and he hopes that the event will boost the growth of the sport in his country. In 1999, New Zealand hosted the U-17 World Cup but the hosts failed to advance out of the group stage and an opening game 2-1 loss to the United States—on a winning goal from Landon Donovan—set the tone for a disappointing tournament. 

While the sport is growing in New Zealand, it still faces competition similar to soccer in the United States. In New Zealand, soccer remains far behind rugby in the national pecking order. The national team, the All Blacks, dominates internationally and is one of the sport’s most popular teams from a global perspective. The national cricket team is also very popular. It recently competed in the 2015 cricket World Cup where it finished in second place with wins over England, Scotland, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and the West Indies.

Where the 1994 World Cup was instrumental for the growth of soccer in the United States, Tuiloma is hoping the U-20 World Cup will have a similar effect and move soccer into higher prominence in a sporting landscape where the All Blacks dominate.

The pressure will be on Tuiloma and New Zealand’s U-20 team to succeed and they will be representing both their country and their sport. The All Whites are not a traditional soccer power but they could be a tough opponent since they will be boosted by crowd eager to provide the support in one of the biggest non-rugby competitions to hit the nation.

“When people think of New Zealand for sports, rugby is the first thing most people come up with,” Tuiloma said. “But football is progressing and now we’re hosting the U-20 World Cup, I believe it will give football in New Zealand a massive boost and help the younger generations to start playing the game. People back home are really excited and can't wait for it to start. I think there will be a big crowd at our games and there will be a lot cheering and excitement during the tournament. Having home advantage is huge, yes it gives us a bit of pressure, but this a once in a life time chance of having the second biggest football tournament in our country.

"So we will be ready and take on the challenge.”

Brian Sciaretta is an American Soccer Now columnist and an ASN 100 panelist. Follow him on Twitter.