Weston McKennie says he hopes to receive his first call-up to the senior United States team for November's friendly against Portugal.
Schalke midfielder McKennie, 19, is playing his first Bundesliga season after a year in the youth academy and has featured in six league games so far.
Following his club breakthrough, he told kicker: "I have the hope that I will be considered for the test against Portugal on Nov. 14. I'd very happy about this.
"After failing to qualify for the World Cup, there is the chance to reset a few things. Maybe I can profit from that, even though I am very sad that my country won't take part in the tournament in Russia."
Sources confirmed to ESPN FC on Monday that McKennie, as well as Vitesse's Matt Miazga and FC Dallas' Kellyn Acosta, are among a large preliminary squad list for Portugal, where the U.S. will be coached by interim boss Dave Sarachan after the departure of Bruce Arena. Metro earlier reported McKennie and Miazga were on the list.
Should McKennie receive a call-up, he could be reunited with his friend Christian Pulisic, who plays for Schalke's local rivals Borussia Dortmund.
"He was my first buddy in the junior national team," he said. "That our paths cross that way in German professional football is a wonderful thing. We often see each other."
McKennie's latest appearance came in Schalke's draw with Wolfsburg at the weekend, when he came on as a substitute to return to action after a suffering a muscle injury in September.
A Dallas-area native, McKennie has previously played for the U.S. under-17, -19 and -20 teams. In May, U.S. under-20 coach Tab Ramos wanted to call up McKennie for the U20 World Cup in South Korea but Schalke kept him back for the German U19 Championship.
ESPN FC's Jeff Carlisle contributed to this report.