One of several internationals to have represented their country this season, Vaughn Covil proudly played for USA at the recent 2023 Pan American Games in Chile.
The games, first held in 1951, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports every four years. It was the first time the games were held in Chile, with Covil and USA facing Brazil, Colombia and Honduras in their group.
“It was an eye-opening experience for me in terms of being at a major tournament with a lot of lads that I didn’t know. I did know three or four. When I was 16, I did an America camp with them and it is interesting seeing them now, grown up, having taken different paths in their careers. We’re all 20 now so it was nice to see them,” said Covil.
“The experience itself was three long weeks of building relationships with coaches and players. It was a really special thing that I’m very grateful I had the opportunity to share with a lot of people.
“When you’ve got Brazil in your opening game, you go out to a big cheer during the warm-up and they have a few players you recognise. It was a special feeling to be able to play against them and come on the pitch knowing you’re playing against them. If anything, it probably showed me that I can mix it with the big boys.
“I felt like I performed well against these teams. As a nation, we can be proud of how we performed against these nations. The notion that we were a pushover is something that fuelled us to go and perform and not make it easy for them. It was a special feeling to be playing against these big teams. We really showed that the US are taking big steps to competing with the bigger nations.”
After progressing through the group stages, USA faced host nation Chile in the semi-finals. Narrowly losing 1-0 to the hosts, the San Diego-born forward was proud of how the team competed overall in the tournament.
“The occasion was huge and it was a privilege to be part of it. We defended well for the entire tournament. It was an outrageous free-kick from them to win it. We couldn’t do much as a team to stop that.
“Going forward, we could’ve done a bit better and created more chances and scored more goals. We can be proud of how we played and showed ourselves. Everyone was against us in that game, but we still fought right to the end. It was disappointing to miss out on getting to the final but the occasion itself and the game is something I’ll take with me forever.”
The 20-year-old’s journey at Hull City has not been straightforward. Signed originally to be part of the academy set-up, Covil was fast-tracked into the first team immediately under Shota Arveladze.
Suffering a serious injury on his first City start that kept him on the sidelines for almost a year, the forward has been a consistent performer for Conor Sellars’ Under-21 side, netting in the Tigers’ 4-0 victory over AFC Bournemouth Under-21s at the MKM Stadium.
Now returning from international duty, the forward is eager to nail a regular place in the first team after featuring in the EFL Cup fixture against Doncaster Rovers.
“I want to stay fit and look after my body. I know the games are coming thick and fast over the next couple of months over the festive period. I want to look after myself and keep pushing as hard as I can to get in the squad, whether that’s on the bench or in the team,” explained Covil.
“I know it’s going to be tough as we’ve got some outstanding players in the group. That’s always been my aim, to play in the first team as much as possible. I know it’s a tough ask, but I think I’m a good player so I’m going to be working as hard as I can and pushing the lads as far as I can. The harder I work, the harder everyone else works and we get better as a team. We then get closer to what we want as a group so that’ll be my goal.”