Leeds United man's international allegiance switch confirmed with call-up video after resurgence

Leeds United defender Junior Firpo's international allegiance switch has been confirmed with a first ever call up for the Dominican Republic.

The ex-Barcelona man was born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic but moved to Malaga as a six-year-old and spent the rest of his childhood and youth in Spain so holds citizenship for both nations.

He made his Spanish youth international debut in 2018 in an Under21 European Championships qualifier against Albania after making a senior breakthrough at club level with Real Betis.

Then, just prior to an €18 million move to become a Barcelona player, Firpo played three more times for the Under 21s when selected by coach Luis de la Fuente for the European Championship finals.

He played 90 minutes against Belgium in the group stage, then every minute of the semi-finals and final as Spain triumphed over Germany. But earlier this season the Leeds man hinted in an interview with Mundo Deportivo RD that he was seriously considering a switch of allegiance to the country of his birth.

“I always follow a little what the Dominican Republic does in terms of sports," he said. "In the end, I was born there, my entire family is Dominican and for me it is a source of pride every time the Dominican Republic achieves something at the sporting level, which is what I dedicate myself to.

"We had a very good talk here in England, very productive in which I could see that the direction of Dominican soccer is in good hands right now and that it has a promising future. And yes, obviously they presented me with the whole project and all the ideas for the future of football in the Dominican Republic, as I said, it was a very healthy and good conversation.

"It is a pride and an honour that the Dominican fans await my arrival to the national team. But in the end I am always cautious with my words, I don't like to get anyone's hopes up or make promises and then not keep them. The only thing I can tell the Dominican fans is to trust in what is being done, the federation is in good hands and the future is very good.”

Today the Dominican Republic have confirmed Firpo's first call up with a video in which he holds aloft and then dons the national team jersey. They're due to take on Aruba and Peru during the March international break, while June will see them face off against the likes of Jamaica in World Cup qualifiers.

This season Firpo has returned from injury issues to play 17 Championship games for promotion-chasing Leeds, vying with Sam Byram for the left-back spot in Daniel Farke's team. His five assists have helped put together a 12-game unbeaten streak in the league.