In recent times, it has become increasingly common for young players based on the continent to line out for Ireland at international level.
A quick look through the various Republic of Ireland underage squads and you will see no shortage of brilliant names, some of which are a mashup of Irish and more exotic monikers. Aaron Ochoa Moloney is a prime example, with the Ireland U17 international making his first team debut for Malaga over the weekend.
Another such player looks as though he could move to this country to play his club football.
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While there have been no shortage of brilliant names in Ireland youth squads over the last few seasons, a particular favourite of Balls has been Cristiano Fitzgerald.
Having developed as a footballer in Portugal, the winger earned two caps in green at U19 level in 2021. He has not played in this country since then, although it seems he could be part of the League of Ireland in 2024.
According to the Irish Independent, Cristiano Fitzgerald is currently on trial with Dundalk with a view to signing on for the upcoming season.
The 20-year old is a player with an interesting story. Born in Singapore to a father from Limerick and French mother, he is named after a certain Cristiano Ronaldo.
He would spend time in London and San Diego during his childhood before eventually ending up in Portugal and joining the academy at Boavista. He has been at the club since 2017, although he would have brief foray in California in 2019, going on to sign a long-term deal with the side in 2022.
Fitzgerald has yet to make a first team appearance at Boavista and it remains to be seen if a potential switch to Dundalk would be on loan or a permanent deal.
Speaking in January of last year, he recalled how playing for Ireland was always a dream of his as he spent many of his summers with family in Limerick.
Since I was five-years-old I never talked about France or any other country, I always talked about Ireland. That’s just the way it is.
My connections to Ireland are big. I saw my grandparents a few weeks ago, they came out here, and my godmother, my father’s sister, and my cousins. I do see them quite often.
Cristiano Fitzgerald was very highly rated when coming through at Boavista, but he has yet to make a breakthrough at first team level.
It will be interesting to see if he is offered to do so at Dundalk over the coming months. If he can shine at Oriel Park, he could yet force his way into Jim Crawford's Ireland U21 squad.
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