UPDATE: Zakuani goes with Congo DR

I can't say I blame him.

Seattle Sounders forward Steve Zakuani has accepted a call-up to the Congo DR national team for their friendly Wednesday against Mali in Paris.  The main reason, apparently, was the long wait (probably three years) for him to achieve full American citizenship.  The Congolese-born Englishman, 22, said weeks ago that his decision had been made, and that he was waiting until after the playoffs to make the announcement.  He had also previously come to the conclusion that a shot at the England starting XI was far from a guarantee; he wanted to solidify playing time.

He could have done that with the Stars and Stripes.  But the young striker has been outstanding the last two years for Seattle, and waiting for citizenship would have been a waste of time and talent.  He can now play meaningful matches at the international level with a Leopards squad that, after failing to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations the last two cycles, is looking to bounce back to the status they achieved having made the final eight in five of the seven previous cycles.  They've gotten off to a slow start in 2012 qualifying, but most recently pulled off an impressive road draw to Cameroon last month.  They will absolutely benefit from the addition of Zakuani.

It sucks--could have been a huge gain for the US, especially with all the questions surrounding the striker position.  But, like I said yesterday, there's plenty of opportunity and time for this issue to be addressed, including from elsewhere.