Anyone who’s watched Georgi Minoungou in the open field understands that there’s no shortage of talent there. This year, he’s really started to turn that into production, with three goals and nine assists in about 1,200 minutes across all competitions for the Seattle Sounders and Tacoma Defiance.
Rarely has he looked as dominant as he did for Burkina Faso in their friendly against fellow African nation Benin on Tuesday. Minoungou scored a first-half brace, both goals coming after cutbacks that completely erased defenders.
Could this be the breakout that heralds Minoungou’s next developmental step? It certainly has some precedent. At this time a year ago, Osaze De Rosario scored a hat trick for Guayana. He rode the momentum of that performance into a breakout year with the Defiance and Sounders.
Benin is not exactly a soccer power, but they aren’t total slouches either. They finished third in their World Cup qualifying group with a 5-3-2 record, tied on points with Nigeria and one point behind group leader South Africa.
Although Burkina Faso narrowly missed out on advancing in World Cup qualifying, it does look like Minoungou will have a significant role to play. This was the fifth straight game in which he’s appeared for Burkina Faso since making his debut in September.
