Dom Dwyer's contract extension with Sporting Kansas City does more than guarantee several more years with the club where he now holds multiple single-season scoring marks. It also keeps him in the country he hopes to represent someday.
“It's something I want to look forward to,” the young English forward told reporters in a conference call shortly after the extension was announced on Wednesday. “It's something I'm very excited about, and I've heard little rumors here and there, little conversations with my agent that there's interest in the US camp. That would be amazing if my phone was to ever ring for that.
“Obviously, it's a good thing to be in the league for, and I also think the league's going places as well. It's a place to be.”
Dwyer has lived in the US since 2009 and received his green card in early 2012, and the typical five-year period before citizenship means he could be a USMNT shirt in 2017.
The extension comes after the 24-year-old Dwyer set club single-season records with 22 league goals and 24 across all competitions in 2014, helping the 2013 MLS Cup champions reach the playoffs for a fourth straight year despite season-long struggles with injuries and international absences.
His six game-winning goals and seven successful penalty conversions were also club records, and he earned his first MLS All-Star nod just a year after splitting time between Sporting and then-USL PRO affiliate Orlando City SC.
Terms of the deal were not announced, but club president Robb Heineman tweeted over the weekend that plans were to lock up Dwyer's services for at least three more years.
“It's a club with aspirations to win championships,” said Dwyer, who was Sporting's first-round pick in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft. “It's a club who's believed in me. It's somewhere I want to be. You see our stadiums. You see the facilities. You see the coaches, the fans, the ownership groups – all the hard work that goes into the background of the club. It's a good place to be, and it's going to be a more successful club in the future.”
And while other clubs have indicated an interest in bringing him back to his native country, Dwyer said he could see himself as a career MLS player if everything works out.
"When I was growing up, my dream was to always play in England," he said. "That was always my dream. But as you kind of get older, dreams change and if I can continue to have success in Kansas City and enjoy myself, and they continue to show faith in me and want me in the club, then I'm not ruling anything out.
"I'm very happy with the club right now," he added. "I'm enjoying it. I guess we'll see. If they want to keep hold of me and I keep doing well, then I don't think it would be a bad place to be at all."
Sporting are in flux this offseason, trading away All-Star defender Aurelien Collin and declining options on both of their top goalkeepers from 2014. Still, Dwyer said Kansas City's returning core players and club philosophy will keep them in position to contend for championships.
“Obviously, we lost some guys we'd have loved to hold onto, but that happens sometimes in football,” he said. “But we've held onto a lot of good guys, and the coaches are smart. They know what they're doing, and they'll bring in some guys to compete and to win championships. I think we'll definitely improve the squad, switch things up a bit. I'm expecting big things, and I'm very excited.”
Dwyer declined to say just what he's expecting from himself in 2015, though.
“I'm obviously not going to tell you my secrets, because I didn't last year,” he said with a laugh. “Last season my target was, I think, 24, and I fell a bit short of that. But this year – you know me – it's going to be a bit more than that, and hopefully it's a record season. I like to keep my targets high. You can guess at the numbers, but I want to win championships most importantly. I think to do that, then I'll need to achieve my goals.”
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
