Timothy Tillman, the older brother of Rangers and USMNT midfielder Malik, officially filed a one-time switch to represent the United States in international competition. Previously, the LAFC represented youth squads for Germany, as that is where he was born. However, like Malik, Timmy Tillman was able to represent the United States as his father is American.

FIFA approved that change in international allegiance, allowing the two Tillman brothers to both represent the stars and stripes. Currently, Tillman is playing for LAFC, having made a permanent move over from Germany before the beginning of this campaign.

Like his brother Malik, Timothy started at the Greuther Fürth academy before joining the Bayern Munich academy. Timothy only ever featured for Bayern’s reserve side, never cracking into the first team. A loan spell at Nurnberg preceded a move back to Greuther Fürth for around four years. Then, this year, Timothy signed a two-year contract with LAFC. In the current campaign, he has made 16 appearances in MLS and the CONCACAF Champions League combined. He has three goals and two assists in those games.

Timothy Tillman now an option for USMNT

Tillman’s first opportunity to represent the United States will be in June’s CONCACAF Nations League Finals. The USMNT has a semifinal clash with Mexico. The winner of that game will play the winner of Canada’s game against Panama. However, if he does not feature there, he could also be part of the Gold Cup squad. The group stage for that is at the end of June and into July. In 2021, the USMNT’s Gold Cup squad consisted heavily of MLS-based players, like Timothy Tillman. In fact, 20 out of 24 players represented teams from MLS. Moreover, 12 players had less than five caps.

Timothy’s brother, Malik, has already made four appearances for the USMNT. At the age of 20, Malik is one of the squad’s brightest prospects in the attacking midfield. Three of his appearances were in friendlies, the other was in a 5-0 beatdown of Grenada in this season’s Nations League.

PHOTO: IMAGO / Agencia MexSport