Crystal Palace Baltimore have signed USA U18 international Korey Veeder.

The 18-year old will train with the parent club in London for the next few weeks and could even move on to a Portuguese second division side to further his development and obtain European Union work status.

Veeder, a midfielder/defender, was a member of the Bradenton residency program and the Maryland club have big wraps on him.

"We initially saw Korey two and a half years ago in a tournament in New Jersey and we recognized that he had special talent," stated Palace Baltimore's Sporting Director and Co-Head Coach Jim Cherneski, who also serves as Chief Scout for North America for Crystal Palace in London.

"Six months after that, we sent him over to the UK where he spent two weeks being looked over by our Academy staff. We all liked him a lot and the London club wanted to keep him, but due to FIFA rules on age and work permits, we weren't able to bring him over at the time.

"We're very pleased with Korey's continued development and now we're excited to help launch his pro career. We believe he's a special player with special talent and we believe he's going to be a very good professional player."

Veeder admitted that he was delighted by the opportunity of training with a club such as Crystal Palace in England and set his sights on playing in the English Premier League.

"I've loved watching and playing soccer since I was very young," said Veeder. "I'd been hoping to get signed as a pro one day, so this is a dream come true. I'd love to get to play for Crystal Palace in London and then eventually play in the Premier League."