MLS starlet and Philadelphia Union midfielder Cavan Sullivan, 15, is set to join Pep Guardiola’s squad for a training camp ahead of his highly-anticipated move to the Premier League in 2027.
Cavan Sullivan’s journey to the Premier League is beginning in earnest, with the 15-year-old U.S. prodigy set to link up with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.
As a part of his homegrown contract with the Philadelphia Union, the largest in MLS history, the midfielder is set to join City following his 18th birthday. But while Sullivan may have to wait until at least September 2027 to officially join the Cityzens, this isn’t stopping the 10-time champions from getting a head start on his development within the Etihad Campus.
This week, Sullivan is expected to travel to the U.K. where he will join Guardiola’s training camp, as per Fabrizio Romano, with City said to be adamant the teenager is an “elite talent for [the] future.”
Labeled “a generational talent” by former Union head coach Jim Curtin prior to the youngsters’ record-breaking MLS debut aged just 14 against the New England Revolution in July 2024, Sullivan has long been hyped as the future of American soccer.
“The sky’s the limit. I do still say he’s a generational talent, one who can really change the game by himself and one that has such a quick first step [where] it’s maybe something we need too, to unlock a defense, to go 1v1,” he added.
Since becoming the youngest ever debutant in a major American sporting league, Sullivan has gone on to make 13 appearances for the Union’s first team, whilst also a regular for their MLS Next Pro team.
This season, following the appointment of Bradley Carnell as Curtin’s successor, Sullivan’s implementation into the first team has been a gradual one, with the South African seemingly in no hurry to rush the youngster into action. Through the first 20 league games, Sullivan came off the bench just five times, playing just 51 minutes.
However, in June, Sullivan made his first start for the Union in the U.S. Open Cup, playing the full 120 minutes against the Indy Eleven in the fourth round before starting their Round of 16 win against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds two weeks later.
Fast forward to July 5, and Sullivan’s long-awaited first MLS start finally materialized, playing 61 minutes in a 1-0 loss to Nashville SC and, in doing so, becoming the second youngest player in league history to start a game.
After the game, Carnell told reporters, via SI, “These experiences are good for him, and it can also calm everybody down, because there’s a lot of hype around Cavan.
“Sometimes he gets muscled off the ball, which is totally normal, so he’s not quite there where it needs to be from a physical standpoint, but he’s a very talented kid…he’s right where he needs to be.”
Carnell went on to add that the Union had “tried to roll Cavan out in a little bit more of a wingback position with the ball. And I think he got one or two looks in the first half where, in a transition, we could start creating something…Cavan’s a natural counterpresser of the ball, so he’s busy.”
The U.S. Under-17 international has since returned to his bit part role, following the end of the international window, during which both Sullivan’s brother, Quinn, and Nathan Harriel were called up to Mauricio Pochettino’s senior team.
