Who is Anrie Chase?

Anrie Chase

Data correct as of 5 December 2024 

Age: 20
Club: Stuttgart
Position: Defender
Country: Japan (U23 cap)/USA/Jamaica

Key stats and facts

Chase was born in Yokosuka, a city in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture, on 24 March 2004 to a Japanese mother and American father of Jamaican descent - making him eligible for three different countries at international level.

However, he didn't seem on course to turn out for any - not at soccer at least - having moved to the USA at three and played basketball as his primary sport before first kicking a football (the old world variety) aged 12.

But with impressive physical gifts - Chase is filling out a 6'2" frame that he can move with impressive speed - and a unique determination, the youngster honed his game, and after switching from attack to defence was soon scouted by AZ Alkmaar and Ajax before being handed his chance at Stuttgart in 2022. 

Two short years later and he has broken into the first team, kept Vinícius Júnior quiet in the UEFA Champions League, and averaged a 91 percent pass completion across his 17 senior games in all competitions.

Plays a bit like: Per Mertesacker

While Chase isn't as tall as Germany and Arsenal legend Per Mertesacker, his physical prowess and ability to keep things simple are nonetheless his strengths as a centre-back. Like the former Hannover and Werder Bremen man, Chase didn't count on making a career in the game until relatively late, and now that he has, his ability to win aerial balls whilst not overcomplicating his distribution out from the back are reminiscent of the now manager of the Arsenal academy.

Did you know?

Chase might not have made it at all if it wasn't for former Stuttgart coach Nate Weiss, now of Bayern Munich. Weiss often felt like a lone voice advocating for Chase when his fellow coaches thought the step into the professional game would be one too far for the young defender.

"Two years ago, he was in the second team and he was on the bench," Weiss told Sky Sports. "It was very hard for a lot of coaches to see the talent in him." Fortunately Sebastian Hoeneß listened to Weiss, and Chase now has the chance to make his case. 

What they're saying

"All the other kids had seven years more experience than he had. But this kid was obsessed with getting better. There was not a moment when he did not want to train. If I were not around, he would go out by himself." - Weiss on Chase's grit and determination

"We're consciously opting for Anrie. He will play because he has done well and convinced us that he can handle the situation. He did well against Freiburg, and I thought his body language was good against Münster. It will naturally be a huge difference against Mainz, but we trust him to solve it." - Hoeneß before giving Chase a run in the team earlier this season

"If we really believe that a player that can help us and can improve us, of course, […] we are going to be 100 percent involved in that situation."  - USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino, when asked about the possibility of Chase switching international allegiance