Exclusive:I left the USA to chase my Manchester United dream - I'm about to make history in Europe tonight

Matthew Olosunde is not your typical football player.

A well-educated and engaging young man, he is extremely polite and well-spoken, and approached his studies with the same commitment and discipline as his sporting career.

Born in Philadelphia and raised in New Jersey, Olosunde shone at Princeton Futbol Club before he was poached by New York Red Bulls. After three impressive years there, he found himself at a crossroads. He could either continue his career in the youth set-up at the MLS club, or go to College. He chose the latter.

Olosunde had already committed to play college soccer at Duke University, when an unexpected offer from boyhood club Manchester United arrived. In order to sweeten the deal, United facilitated a short course at the University of Oxford to ensure he would still be able to maintain his studies.

A full USA international while still in the United youth ranks, the 26-year-old now finds himself playing his football in Wales, well technically. The New Saints, or TNS as they are better known, have won the Welsh Premier League 12 times in the last 15 years despite actually being located in England.

This week there won't be much debate about geography. For the first time ever, they will play in European competition proper, a momentous occasion for not only the club, but also for the domestic game in Wales. Though a host of Welsh sides have tasted European football via the defunct Cup Winners' Cup, TNS made history this season when they became the first-ever Welsh side to qualify for Uefa competition through the lengthy qualifying rounds.

By the time they line up to face Fiorentina and United great David de Gea tonight, they will have already faced Montenegrin side FK Decic, Hungarian champions Ferencvaros, Moldovan champions Petrocub Hincesti and Lithuanian champions FK Panevėžys in the next stage of a European campaign that started back in July.

"Yeah, it is pretty crazy," Olosunde tells Manchester World of the forthcoming campaign. "It is not something I would have thought about before the move happened. It was what I wanted, but expectations are different from reality.

"I think that was the main draw, the opportunity to play European football. It is a really big thing. For the players, it means so much. Everyone is so excited to be here and to play these teams. It means so much to all the players and staff."

Signed by United at the age of 18, Olosunde never made a senior appearance during his subsequent three years at Old Trafford but was a regular in first-team training as part of the same youth group as Angel Gomes, Tahith Chong, and James Garner.

He worked closely with Nicky Butt at youth level and was twice included in senior matchday squads by Jose Mourinho for matches against Tottenham and Arsenal, but unfortunately never made it onto the pitch in a competitive match. Olosunde continued: "I was closer to Butty than Jose. It was weird being around them but you kind of get used to it. It becomes sort of normal.

"I shared the experience with a few other players that were around my age group, so that made it easier definitely. It was quite nerve-racking to be fair, but also a bit disappointing that I couldn't push on from there. It was still a proud moment for me. That is one of the things that I would have loved to have done, but there are so many elements why it didn't happen, football is football."

Though he had already quit the New York Red Bulls to pursue his scholarship at Duke University, Olosunde couldn't do the same when United came calling after his impressive performances at the U17 World Cup. The youngster, who grew up idolising Cristiano Ronaldo and Paul Scholes, jumped at the chance to move to Manchester.

"I was nervous about it and unsure about how it was going to go, but I just tried not to put too much pressure on it. It was just playing football. It was a bit strange, a bit surreal. It was something that took a bit of getting used to. At the same time, it was a bit different for me because I was older compared with a lot of the players, and how long they'd been there for. I felt like a Manchester United player, but I didn't feel like a proper United player until I got into the first team."

A year after he moved to Old Trafford, Olosunde received his maiden cap for the United States of America, an incredible achievement that he could only have dreamed about as a child. There was always hype wherever he went, but by his third season at United, he soon became aware that his time could come to an end.

"I was quite content with how my exit happened. I guess it didn't all come as a surprise, you kind of have a feeling when your time is up. Especially when you have seen players get released every year. When it gets closer to your year, you see players you thought would make it get released and it dawns on you that it could be coming to an end here."

Upon his release, Olosunde signed a two-year deal with League One side Rotherham. In his debut campaign, he helped secure promotion to the Championship and after another impressive campaign, he turned down a new contract as he went in pursuit of a new opportunity.

He signed for Preston North End, but unfortunately, his time at the club was plagued by injury. Olosunde made just three appearances in total after suffering Achilles tendon and groin injuries which ruled him out for the majority of his first campaign.

When they released him last year, he was invited back to train at Carrington as part of their alumni initiative and would go on to have a trial with League Two side Swindon Town before the unexpected offer to join TNS arose.

Olosunde openly admits he did not know too much about the Welsh side before they approached him, but the lure of a potential pathway into Europe was an exciting offer he couldn't turn down as he looks to rediscover his love for the game after his injury issues.

"It was only when I signed for them that I really learned about them. It is a team that came as a surprise because it wasn't really what I was expecting, but it is what happened.

"I think that's the main goal and the main idea for me. To start playing again, get more games under my belt, and start finding that love for the game again. It is just trying to find my feet again and get things kicking."