Adnan Januzaj faces pressure to play for Kosovo

Manchester: Adnan Januzaj is coming under increasing political pressure in Kosovo to play in the country’s first international fixture, against Haiti next month.

Kosovo’s First Deputy Prime Minister Behgjet Pacolli has made a plea to the Manchester United winger to commit his international future to the country.

Kosovo are not yet affiliated with Fifa, but they have been authorised to play Haiti in their first official match.

It will be a massive coup for Kosovo if they can persuade Januzaj to represent them in the friendly, but he wants more time to make a decision on his future. Januzaj, 19, was born in Brussels but his complicated family background means he could play for a number of international teams, including Belgium, Kosovo and England if he meets residency rules.

England were one of the teams hoping to capitalise on Januzaj’s reluctance to commit his international future to any one team.

Under Fifa rules, he cannot change nationality until 2017, but FA chiefs admitted last week that they are in talks with Fifa over a rule change.