Sporting Kansas City forward Daniel Salloi earned his second cap for Hungary on Sunday, coming off the bench in the 67th minute of a late 1-0 road loss to Albania in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying.
Salloi entered with the game scoreless, replacing teammate and Philadelphia Union midfielder Daniel Gazdag, before Albania salvaged an 87th-minute winner through Armando Broja at Elbasan Arena in Elbasan, Albania.
The frustrating result drops Hungary, seeking their first World Cup appearance since 1986, to fourth place in UEFA Group I with five World Cup qualifiers remaining on the road to Qatar. The top team in Group I will secure an automatic berth in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, while the second place side will advance to a playoff round of qualifying next March.
Salloi and Hungary will have an opportunity to respond quickly when they host Andorra at 1:45 p.m. CT on Wednesday at Puskas Arena in the Hungarian capital of Budapest. It is the same site where Salloi made his international debut in a 4-0 loss to England on Thursday. Fans can catch Wednesday's qualifier live on ESPN Plus.
Sunday's appearance is the newest feather in the cap for Salloi, who has enjoyed a brilliant 2021 MLS campaign as one of the league's most prolific attackers. He leads the league with 18 combined goals (12) and assists (six) and became the first Sporting KC Academy product to land MLS All-Star accolades when he featured in the MLS All-Star Game on Aug. 25 at Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles.
Salloi, 25, is the third Sporting player to make a national team debut in the past three months, joining midfielders Gadi Kinda (Israel) and Gianluca Busio (USA).
